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ON THE RAVINE, NORTH OF LAKE CHAMBERLAIN. 



BETHANY AND ITS HILLS 

(.I.IMI'SKS ()!• THE TOWN OF BI-TH.WV AS IT WAS HI-TOKE 

THI-: RAILROADS AM) THIv FIRK FIFND ROHIiFD 

Fr OF FIS CFORV 



^ 



Mrs. ELIZA J. LINES 

NEW HAVKN, CONN. 



COitll JUnstrationQ 



NliW IIAVEX: 

THE Tl'TTI.E. MOKKlIOrSE & TAYLOR COMPANY 
1905 



CONTENTS. 



Introductory, 

r.rtliany and ils Hills, . 

l'>(.-tliany was incorporate<l as a to\ 

Alt. Sanford, 

Beacon Hill, 

Beacon Cap, 

The Isaac Clark l-~aniily. 

The Sperry Families, 

Capt. Ebenezer Dayton Robbery, 

The Hezekiali i'lionias Motel, 

Rev. Isaac Jones, 

The Thomas and 'J'olles Families, 

The I*'rencli Family, 
Rev. Frederic B. Woodward. ?v[.D 
The Hotchkiss Family, 
Interesting Notes, 
The Beecher F\'unily, 
Lebanon Hill, 
The Perkins Family, 
Isaac Judd, 
Uri '["little F^amily, 
Leonard Todd Family, 

The Carrington Family 
Rev. Edmund Peck, 
Garry Hoadley Family, 
Lambert Wooding, 
The Santnrd i'amilv. 



183: 



PACE. 

vii 
I 
6 

9 
II 
12 
17 
19 
24 
27 
29 
30 
31 
3,^ 
35 
27 
41 
42 
45 
49 
50 
56 
56 
60 
62 
62 
63 



LIST OF PORTRAITS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 



PC) RIKA ITS. 

-Mrs. Sarali (Si)crry) Peck, 

Tlicodon- 1 lotclikiss. 

Mrs. Lucia ( Spcrry ) ]Ji)tchkiss, . 

I'llizur 1 1. Six'rry, 

Harry Im-ciicIi. ..... 

Mrs. Jane ( l-"rencli ) Peck, . 
I he Rev. iM-eck'ric I!. Woodwarck opposite 
W'iiliaiii kouiishury. 
Archibald .\I)ner Perkins, 
Mrs. Milly (Ju(kl) Perkins, 
Rev. Israel P. Warren, D.D., opposite 
Seymour 'i'uttle, ..... 

Miss Jennette Tuttle, .... 

Mrs. Leonard Todd — five generations, opposite 
John Bennett Carrinston. opposite 



PACE. 

i6 

17 
18 
20 
33 
34 
34 
40 
46 

47 
48 

53 
54 
56 
58 



ILLL'STRATIONS. 

On the Ravine. ...... 

Christ Episcopal Church 

Congregational Chinch. .... 

Episcopal Church and Rectory, 
Methodist Church, opposite .... 
The Old House and Mill of Edson Sperry, opposite 
Beacon Cap. West view. 

Beacon Cap. North view 

The Treat Clark Hou.se 

Judge Clark House, opposite 

The Col. .\lvan Sperry Homestead, opposite 



(Frontis/^icce) 

3 

5 

6 

8 

10 

1 1 

ij 

15 
16 
i8 



H.l.USTRATlON; 



The Old Darling Hotel, opposite . 

The Residence of S. Gilbert Davidson, opposite 

The Elilui Sanford Place, opposite 

The Dr. Castle House, opposite 

The Jesse Atwater House, opposite 

The Old Hezekiah Thomas Hotel, opposite . 

The Bethany Post Office, opposite 

The Residence of Samuel R. Woodward, opposite 

The George Hotchkiss House, opposite 

The Lysias Beecher House. . 

The Old Lewis Thomas House, opposite 

The Old Kimberly House, opposite 

The Eliakim Smith House, opposite 

The Allen Thomas Homestead, opposite 

The Old Perkins Tavern, opposite 

The Old Uri Tuttle House. South view. 

The Old Uri Tuttle House, North view. 

The Chauncey Tuttle House, opposite 

The William Wooding House. 

The Hoadley Mills, 

The Garry Hoadley House, opposite 

The Hoadley Mills. 

The Hoadley Mills and Dam, 

An Old Chestnut Tree near Garry Hoadley's, opposite 

The Hoadley Mills Dam. 

T'e v;.,.-^. c ..-■>- 1 House, opposite 



PAGE. 
JO 

^4 

26 
28 

2S 

30 

3- 
36 
39 
40 

4^ 
4-' 
44 
46 



54 
59 
60 
60 
61 
62 
62 
63 
64 



INTRODUCTORY 



During a brief sojourn in the t(,)\vn of r>ethan\- in the summer 
oi l8<)3, while exehani^inj^' reminiscences with friends, one sug- 
gested that I should make a note of some thing's of interest for 
the l^enefit of later i^enerations. Knowing' there were others 
more eompt-tent to do such a work. I never i;a\e the subject 
a second thought until the \ear i<X>3- 

Ten \ears had elapsed, and in the meantime. hax'inL;' compiled 
a work of the aneestr\ of our famil\. I ha\e had occasion to 
make in(|uiries in that line, and have been often referreil to 
some members of the family who had si'ttled in the West and 
had through <;reat expense and trouble procured the li'enealog'v 
of their familw In e\-ery instance J would get a response so 
kindK and freeh given, witli frecfuently a postscript added, 
■"If \ ( ui have rm\' additional information of old landmarks, etc.. 
it would be full\- appreciated." that, feeling under such great 
obligations, how could I reci])rocate l)etter than 1)\- collecting 
such items as far as able to do so? 

In recei\ing scores of such letters one is reminded of the 
oft-repeated lines of Scott: 

"brcatlies tluTe a man with soul so (k-ad. 
Willi never to liinisclf iiatli said, 
Tliis is my own. m_\- n;iti\e ];ui(l !" 

"Land of my >ire> ! wii.u mortal iiand 
Can e'er untie tlie filial h.ind 
rii.at knits me to tiiy rni^.i^od >tr;uid!" 

In making an effort to procure \iews of some ot the old home- 
steads we foimd ih.it the homes of the tn-si settlers (that had not 



VIM IN rK«iinn rioN. 

boon ilostroyod b\- hre") had qoiic io decay, and tiothiiii^- was left 
{o mark tlic site vuiloss occasionally an oUl cellar wall, with 
a remnant of a lilac or rose bush near, or an old well sweep 
tc^ssini;- about an old oaken bucket that had hung in the well. 
Therefore the only alternative seems to be in preserving views 
oi those houses built at a later date, several over a century 
old. and some of historic interest. 

C"arl\le said. "History is the essence of innumerable biogra- 
phies." 

It requires nice discrimination to give credit to the original 
author, as every generation ailds material. 

We quote from Barber ami Rockey. and others, that which 
has been collected from the earliest records, with additions. 

Montaigiie said. "I gathered a f^osic of other men's flowers, 
and nothing mine own Inu ihe thread that binds them." 



BETHANY AND ITS HILLS. 

GLIMPSES OF THE TOWN OF BETHANY AS IT WAS BEFORE THE RAIL- 
ROADS AND THE FIRE FIEND HAD ROBBED IT OF ITS GLORY. 



And he led them out as far as to Bethany and he lifted up his iiands 
and blessed them. — St. Luke, chap. 24. 50th verse. 

The town of l'>etlian\ was oris^inallN incktdcd within the 
Ixjtnidary lines of the Xew I laven Colony. 

"I^ew places in our conntr_\- can fiu'nish more interesting 
materials of its past history than .\ew 1 laven. its hrst settlers 
were a remarkable bod}-. 

I )istinguished above most men by high moral principles, and 
an inllexible attachment to civil and religious liberty, thev were 
indeed, of the best class of the nation from which they emi- 
grated. 

Many of them had moved in superior ranks of life, and some 
had held offices of great trust and respousil)ilit\- in their native 
country. 

Xew Haven is beautiftiUy situated on an extensive plain, at 
the head of a harbor or l)a\ . which extends inland four miles 
from Long Island Sound, and is nearly environed on all sides. 
except in this direction, Ijy an amphitheater of hills." 

Barber's Antiquities. 

In 1661 Richard Sperr\ harbored the Ivegicides at his house 
three miles west of the center of Xew Haven, and l\ali)h Lines 
lived abotit a mile west on the hill. Which, when that portion 
of the town ol .\'ew Haven was sei)arated and called .Vmity, 
placed these two families just owr the line in .\mit\'. As their 
families increased, and the\ were itnited to otlier families, they 
migrated to the ■"hills," where they were joined by families 
from the adjacent towns. .Milford. r)erb\-. Cheshire and 
I lamden. 

Xo one was allowed in those (la\s to hold a religious meet- 
ing or to give an exhortation in anv meetings without con- 
sent of the ])ro])c-r atithorities. 



2 IIKTHAX^' AND ITS IIIIJ.S. 

Previous to 1/37 the inhabitants of the northwestern part of 
the town of Xew Haven were obliged to go ten or twelve 
miles to church on the Sabbath ; at that date an Ecclesiastical 
Society was formed and it was decided that the dwelling house 
of .Mr. Joseph Wilmot and the dwelling house of Mr. Joseph 
Perkins should be the ])laces for the meetings for divine service. 
In 1738 it was decided to build a house for the worship of God. 
In August. 1740, the first meeting was held in the new meeting 
house. Rev. Gideon Mills. Mr. Whittlesey, and Nathan Birdsey 
were candidates for the ministry, but did not settle with them. 
On Mav i, 1742, Rev. Benjamin Woodbridge received a call and 
was installed on the 3d of November, 1742. 

Rules were soon adopted for seating the church : the (lignit\- 
of a person was reckoned from the amount of his tax rate for 
the building of the meeting house. 

Mr. Woodbridge held the office as pastor of the first church 
forty-three years, until his death, December 4, 1785. His long- 
pastorate seemed to have been successful and harmonious. 

In 1762 the north part of the parish was set olT and consti- 
tuted the parish of Bethany, and a new ecclesiastical society 
ordered. 

A society committee was chosen, consisting of Timothy Peck, 
John \\'hite, Isaac Beecher, Daniel ToUes. and Joel Hotchkiss, 
"prominent, representative men." ]Meetings were held in the 
school-house which the Amity societv had built in 1750, about 
a mile south of the present center. ( )n the 12th of October, 
1763. the Rev. Stephen Hawley was ordained its first pastor; 
in i7f)()-]770 a clnu'ch was built on the hill a half mile south 
of the present church, and Mr. Hawley continued pastor until 
his decease — 1804, a period of over forty years. His wife, 
Mary Bellamy, died 1791, leaving three children. In 1793 he 
married Mehitable, daughter of Deacon Joel Hotchkiss of Beth- 
any. She removed in 1806 with her three children to New 
Haven, where she died in 1827. Two of her sons were grad- 
uates of Yale College. 

"Rev. Stephen Hawley, Jr., A.]\[.. was son of Stephen, son of 
Sanniel, son of Joseph ist. He was born in 1738. graduated at 
Yale 1759. 

Tradition says his ordination was performed in the open air, 
near the fork of the roads below the residence of IMrs. Bradlev. 



I'.KTII.WV AND IIS MILLS. 3 

The ordination sermon was delivered hy thai I'lninent (hvine, 
the Kev. Dr. Joseph I'.fHamN- of Ilrthk'hcMn. (onn.. from i 
Corinthians xi. 2. 

Tlif records state that .Mr. Haw ley was verv nsefnl to his 
])eoi)le dnrini;- his ministry and was sincerelv helovcd hy his 




CHKIST EPISdM-AI, CHtKCH. 



tlock. who. in his \isitalions. as well as in his ministrations in 
the sanctuary, heheld his face as it had heen the face of an 
an,£jel. for he was conversant amon^- them with grravity, pru- 
<lcnce. modesty, hnmilitx'. candor, wisdom and henevolence." 
( I laule\' J\ecf)rd. ) 

1 here is a stone erected to his nu'inory in the old cemetery in 
the southern part()f the town, .\fter the Episcopal Church 



4 BETHANY AXU ITS HILLS. 

was built there was a cemetery laid out adjoining-, on the east 
side, and another south of the Congregational Church ; also 
one on the northeast side of the town, near the Carringtons, 
Todds and Tuttles, and later one adjoining the Methodist 
Church. There are some monuments and nice headstones in 
each of them. 

In June, 1806. Rev. Isaac Jones, who had been ordained col- 
league of Mr. Hawley in June, 1804. was deposed, on account 
of some dissatisfaction in the society, and the result was that 
two independent societies were organized. "Sir. Jones and his 
followers became Episcopalians. Timothy Peck, Timothy Ball, 
and Isaac Beecher were appointed committee. 

Christ Church (Protestant Episcopal) was built in 1810, and 
the first ministers are not recorded. Before 1840 were Rev. 
Isaac Jones, Rev. A. Cornwall, 181 3; Rev. William A. Curtis, 
1813; Rev. J. 11. Rouse. 1836; Rev. Oliver Hopson. Since 
1840, Rev. Isaac Jones, 1842-6; F. B. Woodward, 1846-8; 
Dexter Potter, 1848-52; Henry Zell, 1853; John M. Guion, 
1854-5; Henry Townsend, 1855; Charles J. Todd, 1856-8; 
James Adams,' 1858-63; V. B. Woodward, 1864-8; H. S. 
Atwater, 1867-74; Martin ?yIoody, 1875-80; C. W. Colton, 
1881-7; Lewis F. Morris, 1887-9; Walter D. Humphrey, 1900; 
Lewis E. Morris, at present date ( 1904). 

In 1836 there were one hundred and twenty-six families; 
prominent among them were Andrew Beach, Beri E. Beecher, 
Williaiu Ikirnham. Edward Buckingham, Hezekiah Brown, Dr. 
Jehiel Castle, Russell Chatfield. Henry A. Carrington, Darius 
Driver, Jesse A. Doolittle, Charles French, Harry French, 
Asaph h^rench, Eber Hotchkiss, George Hotchkiss, Harley 
Hotchkiss, Archibald Perkins, A. A. Perkins, Guy Perkins, 
Abel Prince, Edwin Pardee, Levi M. Marks, Ezra Sperry, Enos 
Sperry, Hezekiah Thomas, Seymour Tuttle, Charles S. Tuttle 
and Henry A. Smith. 

The church has a supporting fund of $4,500 ; bequeathed by 
Anson Perkins, $2,000; Dwight E. Todd, $1,000; Leonard 
Todd, $500; Juliana L. Bradley, $500, and Hannah Beecher, 
$500. 

In 1875 the church was thoroughly repaired, at a cost of 
$2,000. 

In 1885 a i^ipe organ was purchased, costing $1,000. 



BETHANY" AND ITS IIIT.T.S. 



5 



The Cong^rcij^ational society was reorganized 1809. A fund, 
which had hecn started in 1673. was later raised. Deacon 
Isaac lohnson left a legacy. John Thomas was pledged for 
$700. Elihu San ford for $250, and other subscribers for smaller 
amounts, until b\- subscriptions and bequests, in 1890, it 
amiiunted to $8,000. 

In 1810 the Rev. Nathan Huntington was installed pastor 
and continued until \S<2t,. Tn 1824 the Rev. Abraham Ailing, 




CONGREGATION.AL CHIKCH. 



followed by Rev. Ephraim Swift; 1832-1834. Rev. Jarius Wil- 
cox; 1834-36, John B. Kendall; 1840, Samuel Clark; 1843. 
D. B. Butts; 1849. F. Harrison; 1855, E. W. Robinson, and 
subsequently, J.-hn Churchill. William X. B.elden. Ira Smith, 
Augustus Smith, C. Bruce. William S. Woodruff and students 
from the Divinity School of Vale College. A new church was 
built by this society in 1832-3. under the supervision of the 
committee. John Thomas, Silas llotchkiss, Elihu Sanford, Lewis 
Mine, and Hiram Hotchkiss. It is nearly opposite the Episco- 
pal church. 



6 r.RTIIAXV AND IIS HILLS. 

In 1866 it was remodeled at a cost of more than $2,500, 
under the direction of Jason W. I'.radlev, Wilham O. White 
and Justus Peck. 

About 1820 a society was formed of the Methodist denomi- 
nation which resulted in the l)uildini;- of a church in the eastern 
part of the town in 1841. The trustees in i8<)o were: Jerome 
A. Downs. Allen I.ounsbury. Thomas H. Ih-ooks, Sherrdl 
IVooks. 1). r.. I loadlev. William 11. Lounsbury and Uenajah 




KI'ISCOP.M, CHURCH AXD RECTORY — COXGREG.\TIOX.\L CHURCH. 

Tuttle. Amony the first [Methodists were Joel Andrews, 
Georere F. Peck and Philo San ford. 



Bethany was incorporated as a town in 1832. It was pre- 
viously a parish in the town of Woodbridge. It is upwards 
of five miles in length and four in breadth. 

The first town meeting was held at the Congregational meet- 
ing house June 11, 1832, and Reuben Judd was the moderator. 
The officers chosen were — town clerk. Hezekiah Thomas ; 
selectmen, Reuben Judd, Andrew P.eecher. Theophilus Smith. 
John Russell. Archibald .\. Perkins; constables. P.urr Perkins, 



I'.K'iiiAxv Axn ns iiiij.s. 7 

Leverett Thomas; g-rand jurors, Ebenczer Piatt, Jesse Beecher, 
r.ibbius Dickerman, Abel J'rince, Abrani liotchkiss ; tything- 
nien, Leonard Todd, Miles Ilitchcoek, ( iraiit Hitchcock, Joel 
Andrews. I^li Terrell, Abira Collins, Clark liotchkiss, Major 
Lounsbur\-, Anan Atwater, Lewis r.isho]), Leverett Benham, 
Eden Johnson; fence viewers, Lsaac Hine, Timothy Louns- 
bury, Lysias Beecher, Abel Prince, Elihu Robinson. 

The town clerks succeeding- Hezekiah Thomas : in i844-i(S45, 
Edwin Lines; 1846-9. Asa Woodward; 1850-4, Jason \V. 
Bradley; 1855-79, Nathan Clark ; 1880-1904, Edwin N. Clark. 

Selectmen during- that period were : Andrew Beecher, Harry 
•French, Lewis Lines, Aliles French. P. B. Hine. Enos Perkins, 
Darius Driver. Sidney Sperry, Justus Peck. Marcus W. Bradley, 
Edwin Buckingham. Henry E. Lounsbury, Samuel G. Davidson, 
E. O. Pardee, Jason \\\ Bradley, Theophilus Smith. Edwin 
Pardee, Horace 1'olles. Anthony H. Stoddard. Abel Prince, 
Leverett Shares, Guy Perkins, Dennis Beecher. Robert Clark. 
D. X. Clark, Samuel R. \\'oo(lward. Charles G. Perkins. David 
Carrington, Jasper B. Todd. 

Li 1854 Jason \\'. Bradley was the first judge of probate; 
in 1856 Andrew Beecher; in 1863 Xathan Clark, who was 
also commissioner of the Superior Court. 

According to the census of 1830 the population of Bethany 
was 1,049, ^^oodbridge i.ooo. and Xew^ Haven 10.698. Tn 
1900 Bethany was 517, W'oodbridge 852, Xew Haven 108,027. 

There is not much encouragement in writing of a town that 
is retrograding, l)ut it still has its hills; and if the life of the 
town has been ebbing towards the cities and manufacturing 
towns, as the waves of the sea have their daily and nightly ebb 
and flow, so the tide seems turning in a wave of enthusiasm, 
reaching out to the Iiil/s. '"the everlasting hills." 

Where the atmosphere 
So liracing and clear. 

will ])rove a ""balm of (iilead"' to the overtaxed brain and 
bodv. no shriek of a locomotive to tax the nerves, and a voice 
in every breeze seems to say. "Come unto me all ye that are 
weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest." 

The Xew BLaven Water Comjiany is developing mineral 
sjirings. and clearing up the ravines with surprising results. 



8 BETHANY AND ITS HILLS. 

It is estimated l)y the tax list that the company owns two 
tliousand acres at least of the town. 

Idle first house over the division line between Woodbridge 
and Bethany on the turnpike was Enos Sperry's, and east was 
William r.urnham's. the (ioodyear house, which w^as large, 
with a ball room. 

During an interview with the late Mr. Edward Heaton of 
New Haven, whose mother was T<:iizabeth Goodyear, daughter 
of Joel, who was son of Theophilus, of Revolutionary fame, a 
descendant of Stephen Goodyear, the first Deputy Governor of 
the New Haven colonw he said that his mother, in her old age, 
expressed a desire to visit the old homestead in Woodbridge 
(now Bethany) and purchase it, ])erhaps. Accordingly they 
drove out, and, to her great disapjDointment, found that it had 
been destroyed l)y fire, a portion of the cellar filled in and a 
house of a dififerent style l)uilt over the remaining portion. It 
was then owned by William Burnham, and is now ( 1904) 
owned and occupied by his daughter, Mrs. Woodruff. 

David r.urnham came from England, and settled in East 
Haven, and later in Fiethany. He married Rachel Tuttle ; 
their children were: James, William and ^Martha. William, 
born June 11, 1795, and died July 29, 1882. married Harriet, 
daughter of Ami Hoadley ; their children were : Adeline, 
David Alonzo, Emeline, Martha, Margaret and Sarah J. ]vlar- 
garet married George L. Woodruff, son of IMerritt ; their 
children are: Mary S., married Charles E. Ball; Georgiana L., 
married Ellis Warner. 

Following the boundary line to the West Rock ridge over- 
looking Wintergreen Lake, and continuing north to a crossroad 
from Bethany to Mt. Carmel, there is fine cultivated land, where 
the Dickermans and Warners from Hamden, the Gavlords, of 
Huguenot descent, from Cheshire, and the Doolittles, descend- 
ants of Abraham (who was sheriff of New Haven County in 
1644), from Wallingford. having high aspirations, luade homes 
for their families. 

Jesse and Reuben Doolittle attended the Episcopal Church in 
Bethany seventy years ago. although it was three or four miles 
distant, arriving always in time for morning service, and the 
numerous little Doolittles with sparkling eyes and rosv cheeks, 
invigorated by the early morning ride over the hills. Allen 



BETHANY AND IIS 11 ILLS. 9 

Doolittle resided just over the Hamden line, althouj^h his farm 
extends in J>elhan\- to the ravine, which is owned by the Xew 
Haven Water L"()ni])an\'. Tliere are orchards of fine fruit. 
meadows and everything requisite and necessar_\- on a farm. 

The old farmhouse, which is large, roomy, and neatly fur- 
nished, was occupied by ten school teachers from the city during 
a part of their summer vacation a year ago by invitation from 
the owner, Mrs. Beardsley, of New Haven, a granddaughter of 
the late Allen Doolittle. During the past summer several parties 
have recuperated there, and re])ort in glowing colors the benefit 
derived from the mountain air. pure water, and berries in abund- 
ance, free as the air. Everyone cannot summer in Litchfield 
or the Adirondacks. and why should they, when there are 
locations so accessible to the city, so elevated and charmingly 
delightful ? The description of one of these mountain homes 
must suffice, and if an\-onc is interested they should investigate, 
and follow the ridge a mile or two. until they reach the summit, 
where it is said Bethany. Hamden and Cheshire unite. It is 
called on the United States topographical map Mt. San ford, 
and is from (po to t .000 feet high. 



.MT. S.WFURD. 

Just before the late Civil War the United States coast sur- 
veyors who were sent out by the Government were stationed at 
this point as the highest in the State within the same distance of 
the coast. General and Mrs. McLellan were with the party of 
surveyors, with their attendants and families. They used a 
theodolite which re(|uired from four to six men to operate. 
Sight could be taken with this instrument a hundred miles or 
more. 

Parties of e(|uestrians and pedestrians were attracted thither 
during their encam])ment. The view with the naked eye is 
magnificentlv grand on the east, overlooking the beautiful vale 
of Cheshire with its gentle undulation, dotted here and there 
with farm houses, and the church spires locate the centre. The 
purple, blue and gray in the persjH'Ctive. crowned with the 
"Hanging Hills" of .Merideii. is w<.rih a long journey to see. 
( )wing to a queer freak of nature there is a deep cut through 



lO HKTH.WV AXn ITS HILI.S. 

the iiunmtain at tliis point sufficiently wide for a rixid. which, 
in descen^Hng- from llethany. is exccechnsly romantic and pic- 
turesque. In some phices there is harely room fen- two teams 
to pass each other, wlien one suddenl\- emeri^es from the 
wilderness of the dark ravine to view a hroad panorama of 
landscai>e s]iread out before them, and in spring and autumn 
can be heard the weird music oi a cataract which, in leaping 
from the mountain's crest over precipitous ledges, dashing, rush- 
ing, foaming down through rock and glen, is called "Roaring 
r.nxik." a ])lace where poets and artists linger in their senti- 
mental reveries. 

Vo return to the road's level from Cheshire to ISethany. 
Amasa l^rooks. with sons Sherrill and Amasa. resided, and on 
the corner where the roads cross was Isaac Brooks, whose son 
Richanl married Laura P>aldwin. whose sons were the enter- 
prising hat. cap and fur dealers in Chapel Street. New Haven. 
Isaac r>nH>ks married a sister of Andrew Smith of Prospect. 
Their children. Mary. Sarah. Elizabeth, and Cynthia, all found 
In^mes in othcv towns and are all deceased. 

C^n the road leatling north was Benoni and Jesse Perkins, 
whose descendants removed to Waterbury. Turning the corner 
at the Stephen Bradley house was Ransom Jerald's. who mar- 
ried Alma (daughter of Isaac Judd. called the old schoolmaster). 
Their children settled in \\'allingford and were quite prominent. 
Bennett died recently, aged S6. 

Xear by was the commodious residence of Joseph Bradley, 
who married Xancy Baldwin of Woodliridge. and it is said that 
of their ten children not a descendant is remaining in town. 
The house passed into other hands, and later was burneil to the 
ground. Continuing on was the house of '"Johnny did" San- 
ford, son of Gideon. His sister Patty was a spinster, and a 
spinner by vocation, being engaged by families several weeks at 
a time, where from early morn to dewy eve her lithe figure 
tripped lightly to and fro. deftly handling the airy rolls white 
as snow with one hand, while the other kept the wheel in motion. 
Her voice was something remarkable. It was like an echo, and 
if it had been cultivated it might have astonished the world. 

Xear the boundary line was a tract of land called the Yale 
Field, being owned by Yale College, where the students were 
wont to assemble on holidays for athletic sports, etc. 



BETHANY AND ITS IIILI.S. II 

As the road meets the turnpike there is tlie old house and 
mill, nestled in the shadow of the I'.eacon. it was huilt by Isaac 
Hine and owned later by Edson Sperry. who conducted the 
eardins;- of wool and d\ein,o- and dressiut;- of cloth in a ver\- 
satisfactor\- manner. It is now owned bv Air. Twitehell. 



BEACOX HILL. 

About fourteen miles from New Hawn the main mad to 
\\'aterbur\- ])asses by I'.eacon mountain, a rucU- rid^e <'f almost 




llKACdX I AT. WKST VIEW. 



naked rock stretching- southwest; at this i)lace is "Collins 
tavern." lon^- known as an excellent public house, and the 
"Straitsville 1'. ( '."■ About half a mile south of Mr. Collins', 
the road ])asses throU|L;h a narrow defile, fornieil by a i^aj) in 
the mountain, and is l)arely sufficient in width for a road and 
a small but sprij^htly brook, which winds throug:h the nar- 
row i)assa.£!:e. On both sides the cliffs are lofty, particularly 



1 J BETHANY ANP ITS HH.I.S. 

on the west: on the east, at a little distance from the road, 
thev overhano- in a threatening^ manner. — "The ridges of the 
I'eacon nionntain present fine geological and picturesque 
features, and are much more abrupt and granil than most of 
the mica slate regions of Connecticut. — Barber's Hist. Col. 

Beacon Cap is a huge boulder on the highest point of the 
ridge on the mountain which divides r>ethanv from Xaugatuck. 
It is about fortv feet in circumference and twenty in height, and 
can be seen for many miles distant. It probably floated there 




EEACOX CAP. NORTH VIEW. 



during the glacial period, and nuist have struck with great 
force to have broken off a portion. The view from the top 
is so tine that the church spires from several towns can be 
seen with the naked eye. 

It was a place of rendezvous for picnic parties. formerl\- more 
than of late years, especially on holidays. The young men and 
maidens would have a merry time in ascending, sometimes 
shouting. "Oh. for a Pegasus to take us to the heights of 
Parnassus !" 



r.KTHAXY AM) ITS 1 1 1 [ J,S. I3 

" 'Twas oft SO steep the foot was fain 
Assistance from the hand to gain, 
So tangled oft that l)ursting through. 
Each hawthorn shed its showers of dew." 

Arriving- at the stimmit. seven hundred feet high, kinch was 
spread, garnished with fragrant trailing arbtittis. and winter- 
green with its crimson I)crries. wliicli "boon nature scattered 
free and wild." 

Refreshed and exhilarated, declamations followed, which, if 
they "chanced to fall below Demosthenes, or Cicero." thev 
were not viewed with a critic's eye. but received applause which 
made the welkin ring, when 

With songs and adieus 
They took their last views, 

as the low descending sim hastened their departure. 

There is a cross road at the base of the mountain, weird 
and solitary, which every lover of ferns, mosses and lycopo- 
diums of the cryptogaminous family should visit on a sunny 
morning of a simimer's day. 

Would it be a great stretch of imagination to fancy that a 
line of electric cars would run from Waterbury to Xcw 
Haven through Bethany, within a decade, and a branch wind 
around the Beacon, to its summit, the "Ca])stone, " where 
pleasure seekers with the aid of an "Eiffel tower" and a 
Lick telescope could see the great ships on the Atlantic ocean. 

Or, if this sounds rather inflated, there is just as good 
foundation for a building aside the "Cap" as there was on 
]\It. Tom. or Mt. Holyoke, Mass., and with as good telescopes 
as they have, what more could be desired ? 

Alany persons say they have never been on the "Cap." but 
have seen it at a distance; now. if it is visible for miles around, 
and a guide to travelers by flaylight. what would be the effect 
of a building illuminated at night: would it not be a "Beacon 
of light" (if not to mariners at sea) to all benighted travelers 
in that section of the countr\? 

The above was written ( )ctolx'r 2(>. it;04. and October 2/, 
the Monii)ii:; Journal and Courier had an article of two columns, 
headed: 1 lill Climbing : Over the Alps by Motor Car : Impres- 
3 



14 BETHANY AXD ITS HILLS. 

sions and Incidents of a Long Mountain Trip. "The niotor 
car has conquered the Alps." 

November i. 1004. was the following-: "Baldwin's Air Ship 
makes Fine Flight: Remarkable Performance at the World's 
l-'air. 

.^t. Louis. Oct. 31. — After circling in every direction at a 
height of 2.000 feet above the Cascades, in sight of thousands 
of cheering spectators on the ^^'orld■s fair grounds." What 
next ? 

Near this crossroad was the residence of Timothy Lounsbury. 
one of the trio, with Ailing- Carrington. and Esquire John 
Thomas, who vied with each other in paying the largest town 
tax. Mr. Lounsbury must have been very enterprising to have 
had courage to build so fine a house with a large ball-room in 
such a lonelv dell, between the Beacon and Lebanon Hill. He 
had several children. — Dr. John settled in Oxford and i)rac- 
ticed medicine until quite aged. One incident occurred which 
was characteristic of the family. One of his daughters having 
engaged to attend a ball at a distance, and her escort not arriv- 
ing at the appointed time, she seated herself on the horse-block 
at the gate, when a neighbor passing by. and seeing her attitude, 
expressed his surprise. She quickly retorted: 'Tt is better to 
be ready and not go, than to go and not be ready." Wlien her 
escort arrived astride a fleet horse she was ready to mount the 
pillion behind him without delay. It might have been Eunice, 
who married \'incent Brown. She lost her only daughter. 
Emerett. when on the eve of marriage. She lived a widow 
several years, and would often remark that "there was as good 
fish in the sea as ever was caught," and late in life she married 
a Mr. Fisher and lived to be nearly a centenarian. 

From this point can be seen the old residence of Russell 
Chatfield. high up on the road which leads across Lebanon Hill 
to the cemetery by the Carrington faniL He was a mason by 

trade, very thorough and efficient. He married Terrell. 

Children : ^Nlary, married Beri Beecher. She is still active and 
cheerful. Her ninetieth birthday will occur in May. 1905 : 
Ruth, married Alonzo Warner : Sarah Ann, married Guy 
Beecher : Pamela, married Samuel Todd of Hamden. and 
.\manda. married in 1852 Eli H. Wakelee of Ansonia. Wakelee 
Avenue received its name from the familv. 



KKTIIAXV AND ITS HILLS. 



15 



In 1871 the inhaljitants of the west side of the town petitioned 
the Legislature for a separation, which included about a third 
of the town. and. although they met with most strenuous 
objections, they were successful, and that portion of the town 
was christened Beacon Falls. 

It included prominent men, some large tax payers, Sheldon 
Clark. Xoves ^^^hceler, George Osborn, the P)Uckinghams, 



J 




THE TREAT CLARK HOUSE. 

Andrew T. Ilotchkiss. whose mother was a Buckingham, and 
I'ulaski Chatfield. whose son John was a Colonel in the late 
Civil war. and died in the service ; another son. Henry, married 
a si.ster of iM-anklin I'arrel. the An.sc^nia millionaire. In that 
locality was Adonijah French, and others whom it is impos- 
sible to name. Mr. Dwight Clark, the noted cattle dealer, has 
a fine residence on the extreme west side and nearby was the 
Terrell homestead, now in ruins. Clark Hotchkiss. Daniel Rus- 
sell. Fdwin Pardee. Abel Prince. Carrington's and Xettleton's. 
and (.thers. Not being familiar witli that side of the town 



i6 



BKTIIAW AXn ITS TllI.LS 



must account for the brevity, altlioui^li the records shmv that 
thev were very wortliy citizens. 

After swinging" arouml the circle, we arrive at the okl road, 
once called the shunpike on account of shunnino- the toll oate at 
Siierr\"s farms. 

The old Haniel Thomas house has disappeareil. and ihe next 
was owned h\ (."harles Tlnnnas ; a short distance north is the 




MKS. SAKAH ( Sl'EKKV ) I'ECK. 
Asied 02. 



house built for Jitdge Jason \V. liradley in 1836. by ( irant Hitch- 
cock and Charles French, who built several houses about that 
date on the same plan; they were called a half house, which 
omitted tnie of the large square i)arlors on either side of the 
front door and hall. 

Judge Bradley was quite a prominent man in the town, lie 
married a sister of Col. Alvan Sperry : his only son lost his 
life in the Civil \\"ar. His daughter Althea married Dwicht 



j;k; 



I) n>5 jfii.Ls. 



n 



Clark, a wealthy cattle <lealer; their s^^ has represented the 
town in the lej(islature. 

'Jhe next house is Judj(e Clark's. The hfjuse was ?juilt 
l>y Peter I^-rkins in 1762; bought by Isaac Clark 1809. He 
married Esther, dauj:^hter of Deac^jn Josqjh Treat, descended 




THE/JlX>kE HOTCHKIbS. 



from Kf^bert Treat, who was Lieutenant Governor of the 
.State of Connecticut seventeen years, anfl Governor fifteen 
years. Isaac Clark, son of Isaac of Miiforfl. was a descendant 
of George Clark, whose name is among the founders on 
the .Memorial IJridge at Mil ford. He held the office of 
selectman for eight years in succession. His sr>n Nathan 
was elected town clerk and treasurer of Hethany in 1H35. 



iS BETHANY AND ITS HILLS. 

and continued to hold these offices until 1881. He was elected 
probate judge in 1862, and continued to hold the office until 
his decease. He was also postmaster of Bethany for eight 
years. He married Sarah L. Lounsbury in 1S43. Their chil- 
dren are: Emma S.. born 1844. and Edwin X.. born 1851. 
Emma S. married Pearl P. Sperry. Their children are : Isidore 
S.. Belle E.. Pearl P. and Harold C. Edwin X. married 
Hannah Basham in 1874. Their children are: Eugene F., 
Walter E.. Lena B.. Rubv B. and Frank T. 




MRS. LrcL\ (sperry) hotchkiss. 

Edwin X. succeeded his father as probate judge, town clerk 
and treasurer, and continues to the present date (1904). 

Col. Alvan Sperry married Sarah Xettleton. daughter of 
Xathan. Children: \Tohn. -Sarah (married Frederick Peck; 
one son. Burr; Mrs. Peck is ninety-two years of age and 
remarkably well preserved, with good memory and hearing, 
bright and interesting in conversation) ; ^Edson (married 
Rosalinda, widow of Dr. Whiting : one son. Foster, whose son 



r.KTTIANV AND ITS HILLS. ^9 

is a popular dru.^-.^ist in Xcw Jlaven); ^Xathan (married 
Lucrctia Peck, daughter of (k^.r-e. lis(i. ) ; "'Fowler (married 
[ehersev Nettleton of Mil ford ; their dauohter married Sheriff 
■romlinson) : 'd .ucia (married Theodore llotehkiss ; their 
dau-hter I'anny married JM-ank I'latt, a popular florist in Xew 
Haven: daughter, Kate, remains at the homestead) ; 'Rehecca 
(married Cornelius Allen) : M irace and '' ( iracie. twins ((irace 
married Claudius Allen: their son is a i)r..mincnt druggist in 
Xew Haven: Cracie married Capt. lUmce ) : ^"Marian (mar- 
ried iMlward Smith). 

Col ^perrv was a carpenter hv trade. However, m 1839 he 
an<l his SOILS. Xathan and Fowler, estahlished the malleable 
iron business in StraitsviUe and continued until 1845. when 
their factorv was Inirncd. and they remove<l their business to 
New Haven, where they followed it successfully for many 

vears. 

The Sperrv families are anxiously waiting for the "Si)erry 
GenealooT" to be published, which has been in progress of com- 
pilation Veveral vears. There seemed to be an affinity between 
the Sperrv and Lines families since the t^rst settlers, for they 
have joined heart and han<l so often as to be quite noticeable. 
Capt.'Chillian Sperrv settled in the north part of the town and 
married |ulia Lines, while her sister Sarah married Capt. Jesse 
F.eecher.' and their daughter Emeline married Xoyes Sperry. 
VzvR Sperrv located near the center, and his son Ezra S. 
married Louisa Terrell, whose mother was Hannah Lines, 
dauohter of Eber Lines, who resided a little west ot the center. 
He ha<l a remarkable memorv. and -what Cncle Fber couldn t 
tell vou wasn't worth knowing." His son Calvin had a son. 
Henrv wdio.se son. Rev. ICdwin S. Lines. D.D.. was Rector ot 
St Paul's Episcopal Church. Xew Haven, several years, and 
i. now r.ishop of Newark. X. J. He uiarried Mary Louise, 
the onlv child of Cornelius S. and I-diza ( Kimberly) Morehouse, 
of the'hrm of Tuttle. Abu-ehouse & Taylor of New Haven. 
His brother. Wales Lines, an extensive builder, is one of Men- 
den's most influential and respected citizens. 

The Lines-Sperrv clan is scattered far an.l wide. One. a 
lawver and iu.lge in San iM-ancisco. e-al.. writes: -.Mv daughter, 
iust •o-raduated.' wishes t.. j.nn the Clonial Dames. l.>^ she 
eligible -^" .\noiher resi.les in Johannesburg. South Atrica: 



^o 



KKTHAXY AND ITS HILLS. 



sor.:e arc :.v.. -. -..a-rcs and others who arc !k i arc a^ g\x>d as gold 
could make thein. 

Elizxir H. SperrA\ son of Maniin and Lavinia (^Gaylord) 
SpeiTA- of Bethany, learned the mason's trade c>f Theodore 
Hotchkiss of Xew Haven, where he became a master builder, 
which business he managed so skillfully that he has been able 
to travel abrovad and eujoy the fruit of his labors. He 
marrieti Cliildren : Fannie. Mrs. Frederic Miner, 




EUZm H. SPERRV. 



and Carolena D.. who married Ja^^ -- F r"tk'- ■ Ph.D. Yale 
i903'> of Boulder. Colorado. 

Lucius, son of Burton and Elizabeth ^ Perkins > Sperry of 
Bethany, married Miss Chatfield of Oxford. Children: two 
sons and daughter, Julia. He was also a popular mason builder 
in Xew Haven and highly esteemed by all that knew him for 
his genial ways and integrity 

Sidney Sperry married a daughter of Ebenezer Piatt and 
lived a little south of the churches. He had a blacksmith shop 



r.KTllAXY AM) 11 : 



Opposite, now gone, and the old lionsc is a ruin. His widow 
kept the i)ostoffiee several \ears. It is now near by, kept by 
.Mrs. Hitehcock. There was a hioh school taught there in 
1840 bv Rev. Samuel Ldark. assisted by his daughters. 

On the road below the schoolhouse which turns to the left 
were several Sperry families, Alonzo, Mark, (iarry, and .\llen. 
all worthy citizens. Nearly all of their i)r()i)erty is said to be 
owned h\ the New Haven Water Comjiany and known as Lake 
Chamberlain, which leads south through the Si)erry ravine and 
intersects with Dawson Lake. 

15y permission of the Journal anil Canricr extracts from an 
article published in that paper a few years ago are given : 

"A party of Xew Haveners, among whom was Congressman 
N. D. Sperry and his brother. Knight Sperry, sallied forth 
for a drive on the aforesaid hills in a canopied carriage to the 
music of the rhvthmic hoof beats of the latter named gentleman's 
f^ne pair of steppers. Their old home was in Woodbridge. 
There they were born and reared, there the remains of the 
old homestead are, and every nook and turn in the road, every 
old house, and everv new one, every old landmark, the old 
familiar highways and bywavs, the lanes and hedges, the copses, 
the thicket, the stones and running brooks, all hacl to them a 
familiar and unfailing interest as they passed abandoned null 
sites- it set the Congressman to nuising. One would thnik 
the agricultural glorie^s of New England had all but deivarted 
to read the dismal pictures given in the public prmts on this 
subject, the fact that there yet remain many fine and model 
farms being temporarilv overlooked. And ncwv for a personal 
reminiscence. Now we come to S])erry\s farm. My ancestor. 
Richar.l Sperrv. b.n,ght this farm from the noted Stephen 
C.oodvear, who was Deputv ( iovernor of C-onnecticut, way back 
in 1640. or thereabouts. The <leed for the farm gave all the 
land between the two mountain ridges, which you see on the 
right and left respectivelv, and extending on the south to the 
river running through Westville and extending as tar north 
as the g.HuMand goeth. Cnder such a blanket deed as this 
we can claim u > the Pacific coast. I Un let me here state that for 
the peace of nund of <KCupants of this land, we do not propose 
to press the claim under any circumstances. And here, on the 
left i. the lane through which the I'ritish redcoats marchol 



22 liPrrHAXV AM) ITS IIILKS. 

Avhen in quest of the regicides \\'halley and Goffe ; and Richard 
Sperrv, who had many times fed and sheltered the regicides, 
saw the redcoats as they approached and W'halley and Goffe 
(hscreetly fled to the hill which you see over yonder, called 
Providence Hill. 

And this turnpike we are riding over is the old Litchfield 
turnpike. It was a great highway once. The mails w^ere car- 
ried over this road and the farmers, from up Waterbury way 
and beyond, brought their produce to market over this road. 
They stopped for the night either at Clark's hotel over there or 
Darling's, a little further on, both of which were very popular 
hostleries in their day. Xow these hotels are no more. The 
railroads serve the farmers for transportation now if they have 
anything to transport at a distance. At the old Darling place 
Mr. r>ishop now resides. It is yet a very fine place. Pardon a 
personal digression. You see lining the road that fine line of 
maples, and how thrifty they are; well, a few years ago I 
came up here and delivered a lecture before the X'illage Improve- 
ment Society. One thing I advocated was tree planting, and 
here, through the enterprise of the people, you see the result. 

Over there was the home of Deacon French. He at one 
time set type for the Journal and Courier. The property is now 
owned by the New Haven Water Company. And there is the 
residence of ?ilr. Judge. Mrs. Judge has a camp-stool that did 
duty in Cromwell's army. Near this locality was a factory, 
wdiere Mr. Peck, who w^as the father of the late Lawyer Lucius 
Peck of Xew Haven, made iron candlesticks. It is now no 
more. 

Just in that hollow above the lake once stood a grist mill. It 
was a l)usy place in its dav. 

Ah ! Here we pass the house of friend Doolittle. he of flying 
machine note. Some day he expects to fly through the air with 
the greatest of ease on the machine he has been so long at 
work on in his leisure hours. 

Lp there is the house where our esteemed and wealthy towns- 
man, Joel A. Sperry, was born. I'p there to the right was once 
a factory where the grandfather of the late Xelson Hotchkiss 
made hoes and rakes. Xow it is all deserted. The party here 
paused to take a look down the long sweep of valley which lies 
between the ridges, the view including the splendid new lake 



I'.klllANV AS I) ITS HILLS. 23 

of the Xew Haven Water Company. Dawson Lake, named in 
honor of our esteemed deceased townsman, the late Henry 
S. Dawson. And now, concluded Mr. Sperry, we come to a 
model farm, one of the model farms of Connecticut, that of 
our friend S. G. Davidson, who is one of liethany's most hon- 
ored and esteemed men. It is indeed a model of what thrift, 
g-ood taste, enterprise, foresight and sagacity well employed can 
accomplish. With Mr. Davidson in charge, even a wilderness 
could be made to blossom like the rose. 

]Mr. Sperry and party were the guests of Mr. Davidson and 
of his estimable wife and son for an hour, after which the 
homeward journey was begun, returning through the route 
which passes the site of the Sperry homestead." 

T. S. Gold, State Secretary of Agriculture, has said: '"When 
agriculture asserts its demand for educated men, then we shall 
have an education for the farm equal in breadth to that of any 
other calling, and then will end the cry. 'Why do the boys leave 
the farm ?' " 

The prospects are that the work of the Yale Forestry School 
will be productive of reclaiming much waste land and its 
influence will be widespread. 

The next generation may see in place of shrub oaks, white 
birches and alders, groves of nut trees of various kinds and 
sugar maples, the fine forests cleared of underbrush, so 
unsightly, — when a drive through \\'oodbridge and IJethany. 
the suburbs of the "City of Elms," will be as beautiful as a 
drive through East Rock Park is now ( 1904). \\'hy not? 

If every farmer would plant an acre of hickory nuts he would 
not be obliged to guard with a shot-gun one solitary tree which 
produced a choice nut with shell so thin that a child could crack 
it with its teeth, an<l meat so fat and nutty, delicious and 
nutritious. 

The i)apers state that .Mr. I'rederick Shaft' (.f Pennsylvania 
owns a chestnut (orchard of three hundred acres, in which are 
planted seventy thousand chestnut trees. 



24 BETHANY AND ITS HILLS. 



r.ARiiERs Historical Colllctkjxs of Connecticut, 1838. 

On the night fullowino- the 14th of March, 1780, the house of 
Captain Ebenezer Dayton, then residing- in this place, was broken 
into and robbed l)y seven men. who were Tories and headed by 
a I5ritish officer from Long Island. Mr. Dayton's was situated 
nearly opposite \\here the first meeting-house in Bethany was 
erected, aljout half a mile south of the ])resent Congregational 
church and about ten miles northwest of New Haven. The 
l)articulars of this robbery were obtained from the Rev. Mr. 
Dayton, son of Captain Dayton above mentioned. ^\r. Dayton, 
who belonged to Long Lsland, was, on account of his attach- 
ment to the American cause, obliged to leave the Lsland and 
brmg his effects with him to Bethany. A number of men, .some 
of his neighbors, were obliged to leave for the same cause, and 
brought a considerable quantity of money with them, and for 
a while resided in Mr. Dayton's house, 'with these facts the 
robbers appear to have become acquainted. At the time of the 
robbery Mr. Dayton was absent on Inisiness at Boston, and the 
men who had been staying in the house had left the day before, 
so that there was no one in the house but his wife, Mrs'. Phoebe 
Dayton, three small children and two servants, colored chil- 
dren. About midnight, while they were all asleep, the window 
m the bedroom where Mrs. Dayton was sleeping was burst in; 
seven armed men rushed in. passed through the room, and 
immediately rushed into the chambers, expecting to find the 
men who had left the day before. While they were upstairs 
Mrs. Dayton went to the front part of the house, raised the 
window, and endeavored to alarm the neighbors. Mr. Hawley, 
the minister of the parish, and Dr. H..oker. the physician of the 
place, both lived within twenty rods distance. ]]oth had lights 
in their houses at the time, and both heard the alaruL but^lid 
not know from whence it proceeded. The robbers, hearing Mrs. 
Dayton, came down, and tearing a sheet into strips, tied her 
hands behind her, made her sit in a chair and ])lace(l her infant 
(six months old) in her lap, while one of the robbers, placing 
the muzzle of his gun near her head, kept her in this i^osition for 
about two hours, while the house was thoroughlv ransacked 
from top to bottom. 



BETHANY AND ITS HILLS. 



They found four hundred and fifty pounds in crold and silver 
which 'belonged to Mr. Davton. besides other vakiable articles. 
\\-hat thev^could not conveniently carry off they wantonly 
destroved.' breaking in pieces all the crockery, furniture, etc. 
The whole amount of property carried ofif and destroyed, includ- 
ing notes, bonds, etc.. amounted to five thousand dollars. The 
robbers left the house about two o'clock and went to a place in 
^liddleburv called Gunntown. where they were secreted m a 
cellar b^- a familv who were friendly to the British cause. 
While thev were on their wav to Gunntown they met a young 
man bv the name of Chauncey Judd of \\-aterbury on a bridge, 
who had been to see a voung lady home from a quiltmg party. 
Fearing he might discover them, they took him along with them. 
Thev were secreted in several diflferent places, sometimes in 
houses and at others in a barn at Oxford. From thence to 
Stratford, where thev took a whale boat and crossed over to 
Lono- I.land. The people at Derby having received information 
of their passing through that place, two whale boats and crews 
commanded bv Captain William Clark and Captain James 
Harvev pursued them to the island, and were fortunate enough 
to catch all but one. just within the British Imes. They were 
brou-ht back, tried, condemned, and sent to Newgate, ihey, 
however, broke prison, and finally fled to Xova Scotia. 

Extracts from the book published in 1874. "Chauncey Judd, 

or the Stolen Boy" : ■ j ^f fi-,^ 

"Captain Davton's residence «as on the eastern s.de of the 
meeting-house Green. At a later period it beeanie the abode of 
ColoneT Ehhu Sanford. the father of Ehhu and Harvey San- 
ford Esqs., long known as among the n,ost respectable cfzens 

°*On the"o,he"sides of the Green were the houses of the pastor, 
Rev Mr. Hawlev. and the physician. Dr. Hezek.ah Hooker. 

As the historkal part of the story has been recorded. we^« ,11 
onlv quote some incdents which Rev. ^^^^^^^- ^^■^; 
the' author savs are in all essential respects stnctlx true havm^ 
leen ':::-' tmies told to h.m by a near relative « '-^-— 5^^ 
Millv ludd), a sister of the "stolen boy who '«<" "^^" .^ 
personal knowle.lge of the facts, and d,e<l at the age of nu,etv 

nine. 



20 BETHANY VNl> ITS H U I S. 

"One of the most thriUinji inciilents ixxurroj when iho rob- 
bers had betXMiie nearly exhavistevl with carrying their Ixx^ty. 
and reahzing' that their captive was a dangerous burden, they 
decidevl to put him out of the \va\ ."" An ojxm\ sixn was found 
among- the hushes near where the stream made a ^leep p<.x'>l 
of vlark water tleckeii with f^xun from the waters above. 
Chauncey was draggeil to the brink and bidden to fall upon his 
knees, while Graham, with a loaded nmsket. withdrew a short 
distance from him. "Young man." he said, "you nuist pre- 
pare to die! Say your prayers as quick as yvni can. We have 
no time to waste, but will give yon ten minutes to do it in." 
The poor lad fell on his knees to beg for his life. He tnnied to 
the young men. whom he had met at huskings and merrymak- 
ing's, and entreated them to save him. All seemed in vain. 
Graham stcxxl immovable, with his watch held forth iu his o|xmi 
hand, coimting off the minutes as they passeil. 

"Three, four, five I" "God in heaven !" cried the boy franti- 
cally, "help me! Oh. tnother. mother! Save me. save your 
boy !" "Seven, eight." said Graham, in unaltered tones, riie 
agonizing cry of the lad sank into a low tnoan of despair. 
"Xine. ten. time's up!" exclahned the captain, returning the 
watch to his pocket and raising the nniskei to his shoulder. 

At that instant Henry \\\xx^ter sprang forward and clapped 
his hand over the muzzle of the gim. 

"Xo. captain." said he. "don't fire : it's tvx> bad." 

"Get out of the way!" thundered the ruffian, "or Til blow 
your hand off." 

Almost at the same moment both Cady and Scott interposed. 
rushing in between him and Chauncey. Wooster seized the 
g\m and raised the muzzle into the air. "You shan't kill him ! 
You've got to shoot me first!" "Aud me!" "And me. tvxi!" 
cried the others, and they planted thetnselves firmly as a screen 
before the kneeling figure of the youth. 

Later on. while the fugitives were secreted in a cellar at the 
Wooster house in Derby, a well was discovered, and Graham 
wrung a reluctant assent from his companions that Chauncey 
should be shot and put into the well. His pleading cry of dis- 
tress was heard by Mrs. Wooster overhead. She was a woman. 
nay. more, a mother. She hastened downstairs and threw her- 
self between the victim and his nmrderers. who were just pre- 



P.ETIIAXY AND ITS Illl.F.S. 27 

paring- to execute their ]nirpose. "For shame!" she cried. 
"Are you uieu. or wolves, to kill a poor hoy in this wav ? I tell 
you it shan't he done. — not in this house! Take your hanrls off 
him. caj^tain !" The rohhers suhmitted. but with an ill ^-race, 
cursing- women that "couldn't mind their own business." 

At this juncture a door from the room above opened, and a 
voice cried out. "I've come to tell you that you had better take 
care of yourselves. There is a party of men comin.c;' up the road 
yonder that I suspect are looking- for you. There are Mr. Judd 
and two or three of his sons. Reuben and Daniel Williams. Sam 
Hickox, Jude Hoadley. and a dozen more. Some are on horse- 
back and some afoot." 

Among" those on horseback were "Dr. Jesse Carrington and 
Mr. Isaac Hotchkiss from Bethany." It seems they eluded their 
pursuers, and when they thouo^ht themselves out of dan.s^er were 
caj^tured at last, and the young' captive restored to his family. 
Although his health was impaired and his hands, which were 
frozen, were crippled for life, the author states "he married 
?\rabel Hotchkiss (daughter of Captain Gideon), in September, 
1785, wdio died in 1799, after which he married again. He died 
February 21. 1823. at the age of fifty-three." 

The Hezekiah Thomas Hotel is still standing, or the front part 
of it. 

Mr. Thomas taug-ht the district school at the center, after 
the town had built a schoolhouse midway between the old church 
and the new one. Mr. Thomas boug-ht the old schoolhouse, 
which had been built l)y the Amity Parish in 1750. It was two 
stories in heig^ht. The second story was a Ma.sonic hall. It 
was near the old church, and drawn across the hill by several 
voke of oxen and jjjaced so near the new church that one could 
hear the music in summer time. 

He built a new front. Colonel Alvan Sperry being the builder. 
The old hall served as town hall and the first floor as a dining^ 
hall. He also kept the postoffice. which was an inducement for 
tlie clnu-chgoers to cong-regate on Sunday, between the morn- 
ing and evening: services, to get their mail. and. as Rev. Israel 
P. Warren said : 

"It is not to be wondered at that under the circumstances the 
gathering- of all the people on the Sabbath for public worship 



28 r.lITHAXV AND ITS 11 ILLS. 

served, to a large extent, as the oceasion for telliiii^- ami hearitii;" 
news, for the ileliverv of letters ami niessag^es ami the inter- 
change of those frieiuUy greetings and courtesies which are so 
necessary to the very existence of society. If. as ouv old people 
tell us. there is a relative falling off in church attendance in 
moilern times, the reason may in part he found in the greater 
facilities now enjoyed for intercomunication with the world." 

Seventy \ears ago the postage on a letter from Connecticut 
to Ohio was twenty-five cents, paid by the receiver : now it is 
two cents, paid by the sender, and through the system of rural 
delivery it is left at one's own door daily in the country to all 
outside the mile limit (I9c">4^- 

Postage stamps were first useil in the I'nited States in 1S47. 

The postofiice system was first established in Lonnecticut in 
1 003. by special authority from the king. The mail went 
through the colony from Boston to New ^^M■k "once every 
week." The postage from Boston to llartford was i)d. 

The first steamboat from Xew \'ork to Xew Haven. March 
21. 1815. 

The first cars from Xew Haven to Xew \'ork. December 2g. 
1848. 

The first friction matches used. 1821). 

Mr. Thomas had a shop where he manufactured piU'ketbi>oks. 
and as there were no sewing machines at that date he sent them 
out to be stitched, from which some of the farmer's wives and 
daughters picked up (.[uite a little pin money. He married Mar- 
garet Stephens about 1820. Children: Sereno. married Miss 
Candee. He was conductor on the Xew York. X'ew Haven i^ 
Hartford Raih-oad many years. Henry was a noteil fiulist. 
Ellen married John B. Hotchkiss. who was associated with J. 
B. Carrington of the Xew Haven Journal ami Courier several 
years. Hezekiah studied for the ministry autl dieil young. 
David, when a lad. was fond of climbing. A fall from a 
sprightly colt resulted in a broken arm. and as he preferretl 
walking on the top of a fence, a treacherous rail caused anolher 
broken limb; and one evening while the Masons were in con- 
clave in ^lasonic Hall he. with two other lads, climbed a tree 
where they could get a view into the hall, ami their reports of 
riding the goat and other antics were too hulicrous to repeat. 
An old Mason said : "There was nothing to be seen worth see- 



T -9 ^^?> TV 




I'.inilA.W AND lis 11 ILLS. 29 

inj^'. l)iU if tlicy could ha\c' heard llu'v nii^lu lia\c \)cvn (.(lilied." 
Later in life he Icaniecl the art of ])rintinj4- and became press 
agent for 1'. T. llarnuni. W'liile travoHni^' with him he made 
l)all(X)n ascensions, and after Mr. Uarnnm's decease he settled 
in New Haven, where, b}' re{|uest, he lectured reg'arding his sen- 
sations in the clouds as an aeronaut. This was soon followed 
by his decease, which was i^reatly lamented by his friends, as he 
was a i^'enial coin])anion. His s])irit, freed from its tenement of 
clay, could soar above the clouds, invisible to mortal eye. 
h'anny (Mrs. Howard) has been enj^a^^'ed in literar\' work many 
years. Celia married John Atwater of Xew Haven, and resides 
near Boston. She and Mrs. Howard are the only surviving 
children. 

Mr. Perry owns and occupies the i)ro])erty now. He has 
removed the old hall from the rear of the house and built a 
town hall a few rods south. He married a daughter of Orrin 
and ?^Iary (Castle) \\'heeler. 

One reminiscence of that old hall seems btit yesterday. In 
April, 1840, the schools of the town united in giving an exhi- 
bition at Thomas's hall. There were guests from other towns, 
not a few from Xew Haven, including Yale students. When 
everything was in readiness for the evening performance a rap 
at the door of the ladies' dressing room was answered. Giles 
Smith was ushered in. His patrician face was ghastly white 
as he announced : "President Harrison is dead, and we cannot 
go on with this ati'air." After the excitement had somewhat 
subsided, the leading lady stepped forward and said : "Giles, 
who knows of this beside yourself?" "Wilson Clark and 
Lucius Peck." "Go and hush it up. We cannot prevent what 
has happened, sad as if is. The hall is full and it is time to raise 
the curtain." The exhil)ition was given with perfect success. 
How many jiersons remember it ? 

Rev. Isaac Jones married a sister of Hezekiah Thomas, and 
wliile pastor of the Episcopal Church for several years, being 
piite proud of his ancestor ( Lieutenant Governor William 
Jones, who married Hannah Eaton, daughter of Governor 
Theophilus Eat(Mi). he learned that several families in the town 
traced to the same line. He tried in vain to arouse some 
enthusiasm on the sul)iect. He was ridiculed, however, and it 
is nrit known that more than one person ])reserved the family 



30 I'.KTIIAW AM) IIS Illl.i.S. 

record he so kiiuUv offered. In later years, since so many patri- 
otic societies have been orj^anized. in((niries have been made of 
the old people in regard to "Parson Jones' Cicnealo<;y," which 
receives the replv, "It went into one ear and out of the other.'' 

At that date the War of the Kevolution was I'resli in their 
minds, and it is said that the first settlers of the colony studiously 
avoided an\' allusi(Mi to their ancestors in luis^'land, allhoug'h 
some ni them did ])reserve their faniih' coat-of-arms in order 
to enable their descendants to tind their relatives, if they desired. 
They did not realize the value of the information they could 
have imparted so easily. 

The lleraldry ordered by New Englanders and executed b\- 
Mr. Lharles Camp of "S'ork street. Xew Haven, which was on 
exhibition at St. Louis, is perfectly bewilderiui;-. so o(M\i;eous and 
artistic is it. There is so much travel abroad at the present da\ 
that some tourists would like to see the homes of their tore- 
fathers before the\- came to this "barren wilderness,"" whether 
the\- were humble cottai^es or lofty castles. 

In some instances the fatuily coat-of-arms is the onl\- source 
which the professional genealogist has to identify the correct 
line the_\- are in search of. to avoid any humiliating- mistakes. 

The Thomas and Tolles families from West Haven first 
settled on the level ])lateau west of the center, where the r.ethany 
and Woodbridge "Fairs" were held alternately for several 
years, attracting crowds from the city and adjacent towns. 
How pleasant those gatherings were: an incentive to excel in 
their various productions, and giving' an op])ortunity to exchange 
greeting's with old friends whom they seldom met except on 
similar occasions. Why were the\ abandoned? Have all the 
leaders passed away and left Danbury to take the cake? At a 
county fair held in Xew Haven over sixt\- years ago r>ethany 
alone furnished one hundred and twenty-five yoke of oxen, and 
now the farm work is mostly done by horses, and there is said 
to be onlv a few yoke of oxen in the town. 

Daniel'' Tolles. son of Henry- and Dorothy Thomas, daughter 
of DanieP. John-. John\ DanieP married Thankful Smith, 
daughter of Cai)tain SanuieP, lieutenant Sanuiel-. (ieorge'. 
Samuel- married Obedience, daughter of Captain (ieorge l.am- 
berton of the "Phantom Shi])." Children of l^anieP' and 
Thankful were: Lazarus* married Sibvl r.ellann , daughter o\ 



l!i:ilI.\XV AND ITS HILLS. 3? 

Saiimcl'. Maltlu'w-, .Matthew': Daiiirl' marrii'(l Mary lline, 
(laui;hter of hx-'l : Lambcrton* married Abis^aiU datit^hter of 
Samuel and Kuth IJrisax^: jared^ was a soldier of the Revolu- 
tion: Abraham' married hdizabeth ; their dau.i^diter 

Lucv married Lysias IJeecher. son of Captain David and Hannah 
(Perkins) T.cecher ; children: David, Abraham ( marriedC'aro- 
line. dau.Lihter of 1 'hilo Lewis of .\aui;atuek ) , Chauncey (mar- 
ried Mar.iiaret Todd, dauohter of Leonard). Hannah (married 
Charles Thomas). Harriet (married Leverett Thomas), Lliza- 
beth (married Theophilus Smith, who married her sister Khza 
for second wife). Mary (married ikirton .Mallory of Xew 
Haven). Laura (married Mr. Hayes, and (2) Mr. Comer of 
Alabama ) . 

Thankful married Daniel Sanford ; Desire-* married Abra- 
ham Bcecher: Mary^ married Xoah Thomas. 

Daniel'. Children: Horace'"' married Polly. daut;hter of 
Tesse and Sarah (Lines) P.eecher ; Aurelia married Lucien 
Baldwin ; Samantha married Henry Carrington ; Mary married 
!\Iilo Beecher ; Eliza married Wales Perkins ; Curtiss married 

; Isaac" married ?\Iaria I'.uckiui^^ham. He was a 

fine scholar. He tautrht a high school in Thomas Hall, Bethany, 
also in other towns, which were well patronized. Later he was 
in the mercantile liusiness. His son. Colonel 1' remont W. ( one 
of eight children) was a member of the Legislature from 
Xaugatuck in 1880 and. like his father, is an active business 
man. and has held several of the highest offices of the town. 

William French (says the History of Derby) came in the 
Defence from London in 1635 with his wife Elizabeth, his son 
Francis, and five other children. William I'rench was one of 
the original settlers of the beautiful town of Billerica. where he 
died, aged seventy- four, having had ten children born m 
America. He was the author of the famous tract, "Strength 
Out of Weakness," published in London and reprinted by the 
P.oston Historical Society. He held many offices of trust. His 
son l-Vancis came to Mil ford in 1050, settled in 1654. being the 
third or fourth family in the plantation. He married Lydia 
I'.unnell of Milford. They had nine children : Francis, jr., mar- 
ried Aima Bowers. 1 le was high sheriff of the town. Their son 
Israel married Sarah Loveland. Their son David, born January 
30. 1742. married Lois Lines of P.ethany, where he removed. 



32 BETHA.\^ AM) IIS HILLS. 

Their children were: David Adonijah. Luther (of Beacon 
Hill). Asaph. Harry. Sarah. Hannah. Dorcas. Hepsibah. Lvdia. 
Lois. 

Adonijah was a justice of the peace and representative of 
Woodbridge (now Bethany). David French, Esq., son of 
Israel, was a patriot of the Revolution, .going to Boston after 
the battle of Bunker Hill to assist in resisting the encroachments 
of despotism. He was trial justice many years. He repre- 
sented the town in the ( ieneral Assembly twentv successive 
years. He was for man\- \ears a deacon of the First Congre- 
gational Church of BethauN . under the Rev. Stephen Hawlev. 
He commanded much respect and influence as a public speaker, 
having a strong voice and expressing his opinions with frank- 
ness, energy and confidence. He died August 4. 1821. aged 
eighty. 

Asaph married a sister of Captain Jesse Beecher. had a large 
family, removed to Prospect, where he died, and left descendant 
a granddaughter. Mrs. Ford of W'estville. now living, aged 
seventy-nine. 

Harry remained at the homestead, about a mile west of the 
center, where he built a house which is in a good condition at 
this date. He was a man of power and stability. He married 

. Their onl}- child, jane, was a leader in 

society, like her father. While teaching school in Cheshire, she 
met Justus Peck, whom she married. He was born in 1809. 
He was son of Asa", John"', Samuel^, John''. John-. Deacon 
W^illiam Peck first settler. He was an active business man and 
ran the first boat on the Farmington canal. He removed to 
Bethany in 1843. after the decease of Mr. French, and occu- 
pied the homestead. He held prominent jiublic offices, as his 
son Harry is doing at the present time. 

Marietta married Mr. Francis and died young. Charlotte 
married Henry M. Bigelow of Xew Haven. After his decease 
she married Samuel R. W^oodward, a relative of Rev. P^rederic 
and Dr. Asa. He holds the highest oftice of the towiL Chil- 
dren are: Daisy E., Florence E. and Sherman P. They reside 
at the homestead, which is one of the finest locations in the 
town, being elevated and level, with fine meadows, etc. Jack 
Frost lingers late outside. ( )n the 26th of October, when the 
cosmos were black and ruined in the city, they were nodding 



I'.irniAW AM) ITS II ILLS. 



33 



their ga}- blossoms graccfiill\- from the Woodward lawns to the 
passers-by. 

Rev. hYederic B. Woodward, M.D., came to P.ethany in 1846 
from W'atertown and was pastor of Christ Church two vears. 
After an absence of fourteen years he returned and remained 
four years. He was a superior man and greatly beloved. He 
had an interesting" family. His daughter Emeline was S()j)rano 



^ H% 




llAKKV FKE.NCU. 
From an old Daguerreotype. 

soloist in St. Paul's Church, Xew Haven, at one time. 
Katherine married and died young. His only .son. hVederic. 
went io I'lorida and had an orange grove. His lirolher. Dr. 
Asa. graduated at ^'ale in 1844, and in 1845 bought the l':s(iuire 
John Thomas property on Lebanon Hill and built a house on 
the site of the one which was burned when Dr. Spencer lost his 
life. Dr. Woodward had an extensive practice, and died in 
1881. His son iMlward studied medicine and practiced in 
Bethauv in 1861. afterwards .settling in I'.ristol. 



34 



l!l•:•|•H.\^■^■ and ns iiii.i.s. 



Dr. Asa huill anotluT lumsc later, where he resided, while his 
son (ieorj^e occupied the other and managed the farm. I le was 
an active man and missed especially in the l^piscopal Church. 

(ieorge Driver was horn in liethany and spent his school davs 
there. In later years he has traveled across this continent from 
the .\tlantic to the Pacific six times, has seen the snow-capped 
peaks of the i^reat mountains, the ^reat ."^alt Lake and the vast 




MKS. J.\NE ( FKKXl II ) I'KCK. 



prairies, but he was never on "ISeacon Cap" in his native tow-n. 
He attem])te(l the ascent once witli a ]iarty of twelve, and wdien 
within a half mile they were driven hack hy an approaching 
thunder shower to tind shelter in a farmhouse near. He says, 
however, that if he lives until s])rin!L; he intends to make another 
effort to reach that romantic rock. If he succeeds ])rohahly he 
will he sin-])rise(l to see the beauty of the '■am])hitheater" of the 
tcnvn, which he never before was able to ap])reciate. His father, 
Darius Driver, a (juiet. well-informe(l, nuich respected farmer, 




THK KKV. I-KKUKKK I!. WnuHWAKli. \l I' 



iii'/niAXY AND ris II II, I, s. 35 

lived all his life in the town until the age of ninety, when he 
would walk to the city, ten miles, not from necessity, but because 
he liked the exercise ; he had rented his farm and his children 
had homes in the city. He lived to be nearly ninety-five. Does 
not that give evidence of a healthy climate? Scores have lived 
past the age of ninety in the town. ^Irs. Leonard Todd was 
ninety-eight, and there was one centenarian, Mrs. Kane or Cain. 
who was one lumdred and fifteen, and the neighbors said she 
seemed to enjov a meal of corn meal mush or hasty pudding 
with as keen a relish as an epicure would "(luail on toast. "" She 
finally withered and dropped off like an autumn leaf. 

The Hotchkiss family were among the pioneers of the town 
of Bethanv, descending from Samuel, who married Elizabeth 
Cloverly in 1663. Some of the name settled in Cheshire, and 
later went up through the mountain road which leads to the 
Litchfield turnpike. Solomon and I'hilo lived near the Prospect 
line, and others went higher still and settled on Prospect Hill. 
It is said that David Hotchkiss gave the name to the town, 
which was so appro])riate. Tradition says also that there was 
an inn kept by a Mr. Hotchkiss in the old house which was 
standing seventy years ago at the corner of the crossroad, called 
the "])ine tree corner." 

Major Hotchkiss lived on the turnpike .south of the Perkuis 
tavern. Children: Harriet, Harlowe, Adna, and F.mily. all 
went to other towns and the old house is in rums. 

Thaddeus located near the Methodist Church and had one son. 
Dr. Sterne Hotchkiss, whose name recalls an entertainment 
given at Thcophilus Smith's hall nearly seventy years ago, 
when, a schoolgirl, we were permitted to sit in a (|uiet corner 
and gaze with admiration and awe upon the galaxy of beauty 
an.l intellect gathered there, .\mong them were C.iies Smith. 
Wales Peck and Dr. Sterne Hotchkiss, the Smith and Beecher 
and Tuttle girls, and others too numerous to mention. Was 
ever a foreign court graced with more refinement and culture? 
Some of the ladies were graduates of Wilbraham and some ..f 
the gentlemen were graduates of Vale. _ 

Hiram Hotchkiss, located near the center, was .son o f Silas' . 
Joseph*, Isaac^ Joshua-, Samuel'. He married 
Children: one (laughter and three sons. Wales was a portrait 
painter in Xew Haven many years. 



36 I'.KTHAXN' AM) IIS llll.I.S. 

Clark llolchkiss. l)()rn in I'.ctliam in iSo^:;, was son of Isaac 
and I^lizahcth (dark) 1 lotchkiss. \\v married Caroline A. 
Sperry. Children: Martha. Alary, Isaac. Sarah, l"ann\, Julia, 
Anna and Arthur. Atnia married Arian Rosha. L'hildren : 
Clifton and Eugene. Mr. and Mrs. Hotchkiss were members 
of the Congregational Church sixty-two vears. 

Harvey and i^her Hotchkiss located on the west side of 
Lebanon Hill. Harvey married Sarah Ailing. Children: Solo- 
mon, Sheldon, Ueecher, Julius, Theodore, Harpin, Samantha. 
Sarah Finette and Margaret. Only one of that large and highly 
respected family remains in the tt)wn, a son of 1 larpin. There 
are many descendants in New Haven. 

Eber Hotchkiss married Thirza Driver. Children: l)ilazt)n, 
(Jracia. Samantha, jane, Samuel, I^ber and Hooker. Dilazon 
married a sister of William Clark and has one son, iM-ederic, 
who married Miss Crofton and resides in W'oodbridge. 

Harle\- Hotchkiss married a lUickingham. His son Andrew 
was a fine school teacher. His house was burned and his 
mother and younger daughter were consumed in the tlames, 
another sad calamity of that nature which gives a shock to the 
entire town. 

Stephen Hotchkiss lived near the Harr\ iM-ench i)lace. where 
Jared built a new house later, and married Amv l'>ench. 
daughter of Asaph. His widow still resides there, past ninety 
years of age, and said to be quite active. George Hotchkiss 
lived east of the center. He married Miss Sperry. One son, 
Erban, lives in Xew Haven and married Elizabeth Crabtree. 
Their two daughters were teachers and are married to professors 
in Massachusetts. 



I'.irill ANY AM) IIS HILLS. 



37 



IXrivKJuSTlXC XOTES 

Ki'.i; AKDixi; I'lii", OLD rowx oi- lihrnLW v. 

( rul)lislu'(l in the New ll;i\i'n J ounial mid L'oiirirr in njoi. 
willii ml sii-iialurc. ) 



As one (lri\ini^ troni W'w I I.'ua'ii, lhrout;li lU'llianw over 
wlial is termed the "C enter" or ""Ipper road. " conies to the 
|-',|)isco])al and ( "on^re^ational eliurehes, \\Iiich. stanthn^ npon 
hig'h t^Toinid. are (|inte eonspictious, and wliieh are. with the 
])Ostoffice and I'errx 's Hall, ohjecls that ])arlienlarl\- serve to 
determine the "Center" of the small town oi' llethanv. he is ai)l 
to notice the freshness and pnrit\ of the air: the ])eacefiil 
si'renitx' which rests npon llu' rnral comnuniit\ ; the \-aried and 
heantifnl landscape; the lowing' of the cattle, "as the i)lo\\nian 
homeward plods his wear\- wax." and if he chances to look 
hehind him. the tine view to hi.' had of Loni; Island and the 
."^^onnd. That these ihinj^s -aw noticeahle is due to the fact liiat. 
hein^;' situatecl np anion^' tlu' hills where the streams ha\e tlieir 
source, hut little water power has heen availahle. and so the 
])lace has escaped the noise and confiision, the pollution of the 
air and the water which are attendant upon the estahlishment of 
larLie manufactories, which, althouj^h of i;reat henetit to a com- 
nnuiitw tend in man\ cases to lower the moral and intellectual 
status of a nei.L^hhorhi lod. and to (k'tract trom it in the exes of 
thosi- who mi^ht otherwise desire to reside in it. 

That tlie hills of r.ethan\- are not already dotted with more 
sunimer homes owned 1)\ residents of Xew llawn is un(|uesti(»n- 
al)l\ due to the fact that in the ])ast ])0(ir roads and no con- 
\eni(,'nt railroad facilities ha\e heen discourai^iuL;' factors, 
toi^ether with the limited knowledi^e thus alfurded ol the 
heautiful hills and mas^nitkx'Ut \iews to he had from some ol 
theuL This oI)stacle is already hein^' o\eicome in a marked 
de^ret- 1)\ tlu' availnienl 1)\ the town, and also hy the sister town 
of Woodhridi^e, of the slate law. hy which the roads leailin.iL; 
from Xew Haven to the W oo(ll)ri(lge and I'.ethany hills are 
lieinj^ im])roved. 
6 



3 8 BETHANY AND ITS HILLS. 

If the traveler goes north from tlie cluirches about one-eig'hth 
of a mile he will come to a large and somewhat weather-beaten 
old house situated on the farther right hand corner, made bv 
the road running between Beacon Falls and ]\lount Carmel. 
I'nless he is observing by nature, he will see nothing that will 
particularly attract his attention unless it be the three large 
chimneys which project above the roof and which, with the size 
of the structure, tend to give it an air of majesty, or he may 
note the many old-fashioned windows which dot its sides. But 
looking closer, he will observe that the cornice, though not 
I)rominent nor imposing, but narrow and old-fashioned, shows 
a degree of workmanship and taste which speaks well for the 
intellect and pocket-book of its long ago builder. He will notice 
that the underpinning is of fine cut sandstone, seldom to be 
found under houses built at the time : and should he chance to 
pass by when the front door is open on a summer afternoon, he 
would undoubtedly be surprised to see a large hall extending 
from front to rear of the main house, with handsome arches 
overhead. 

During the past winter the writer chanced to call at this old 
homestead and was struck with a sense of its almost ancient 
grandeur, for it seems to have been what in its day might have 
been called an "elegant residence." Ever since he has had a 
feeling of desire to know about it and its history, and recently 
having had an opportimity to look it over from top to bottom 
and make some inquiries, he gladly availed himself of the opjwr- 
tunity. Knowing the interest which has become general in the 
last few years respecting things in anv wav historical or repre- 
senting the life of our forefathers, the writer takes pleasure 
in penning these few lines of description of a place which other- 
wise might in time pass out of existence unnoticed, with the 
hope that the Journal and Courier may consider them of enough 
interest to the public to reproduce them in print. Among some 
of the features not alreadv mentioned, the writer was particu- 
larly pleased with the south front parlor, which is about fifteen 
feet square, with two fancy arched alcoves at the back, with a 
handsome mantel and large fireplace between them. From 
floor to ceiling throughout the lower part of the house is a 
distance of over nine feet, and in several rooms the wall near 
the ceilino- is ornamented bv a handsome frieze. The writer 



r,i:rii ANN' .\m> ns iiii. 



39 



calls til luiiid at least i'it;ht lar.-^c li.i;lit. airy rooms besides the 
main Inwcv hall, u])])vy hall and a dann- hall some seventeen 
feet wiile li\ thirl\-six \cv[ Inii^. Tlurc arc n<i less than ten 
larg-e tire])laces. Tlu- w latcr is told thai tlu' dance hall has been 
used for holdin-;- ^•h^u■ch festivals, and for a time the reonlar 
town meetin.^s. The older peo]ile deliLiht to tell of the socials 
and dances that thev used to attend under its hospitable roof, 
and it is ])resuniable that not a few Xew Haven ])eoi)le who 




THK l.VSIAS IIEKCUEK HOISK. 



read tliese lines may recall havin.u' at some time in their lives 
shared the i)leasures of tlu'se past social .^alhermiis. 

What mi.uht be termed a curiositv is situated in the oarret. 
and consists of a cnnniodious brick smoke-house used for 
smokin- hams or beef. It is arran-ed to be connected by pipe 
with the kitchen stove and the chinmey. thus enablin.o- the 
accomplishment of curin- the p<.rk and lurf for the larder 
without an extra fire or the expenditure of unnecessary labor: 
a uuicpie example of the idea expressed in the .>1(1 ada-e. 
"Killint' two birils with one stone. 



4° 



l:l•:TII.\^•^■ and ri: 



It appears that the house was huiU by one Darius ISeecher. 
The writer is unable to s^ive nuich information relative to said 
Beecher other than that he was at the time of building' quite 
wealthy: had two daughters and. if rightly informed, one son; 
that he went west with his family, lost his fortune and was not 
much heard from. 'Idie place was afterward occui)ied by one 
Abram lieecher. who was. however, not related to the builder. 




WILLI A At LOUNSIUKV. 



Later it was owned bv Lewis Thomas, who occupied it with 
his family. T,ater it l)ecame the property' of ( )rrin Wheeler, 
who occupied it with his family till his death in 1874. His 
Avidow, son and unmarried daughters continued to occupy it 
mitil the death of Mrs. Wheeler in i8(j8. and the death of the 
son in i8(;(;. The Misses Mary and Christina Wheeler still 
cling to the associations which make the "( )ld Homestead" 
dear to them, and remain under the roof which has withstood 
the storms of the nineteenth century and enters upon the 



BETHANV AXn ITS IIII.I-S. 4^ 

twentieth still i)nitectino- a fniniework of massive oak. but little 
the worse for time and wear, hut which must inevitably succumb 
in time if not ^iven thai protection which has so lon.cr been 
afforded it till death and adversity have n.bbed the hands which 
would have kept the outside as neat and beautiful as the mside. 
The r.cecher family in P-ethany seem difficult to trace. 
Thcv seemed to settle near the center, Lysias near the 
churches, north. 1 lis father. Captain David, lived on the cross- 
road east, where he had built a g-rist mill. Darius built on the 
corner ( )ne Darius sold to Ebenezer I'latt, about iScx), a house 
west near Harrv l-rench's. and Calvin Ueecher built on the mam 
road north, near Lebanon Hill. His wi<low married Esquire 
Kimberlv. from West Haven. She had seven children and he 
hve One daughter married Major Lounsbury (son of Elias 
and Alarv IVrkins). His son Henry eventually owned the 
propertv,^and his widow resides in the <.ld home. The Ivimberly 
children were: Georoc. married Sarietta Tuttle ; Dewitt, mar- 
ried l^i/a Lines, daughter of Abel: Charles, married Harriet 
Spcrry,, daughter of Enos of WestviUe : Phoebe, marne<l Dr. 
Andrew Castle, and Lucretia, unmarried. 

On the east, near the turnpike, called the Beecher district, were 
Andrew, Jessie, David and Deri. Some of the family claim to 
be descendants of Rev. Dr. Lyman T-eecher. 

The Lounsburv familv were among the early settlers ot the 
town The first house built on Lebanon Hill was owned by 
l.,hn Lounsburv, son of Timothy, and .sold to Jonathan Smith 
in 17- and was then verv old. Jairus, son of John, had a son. 
Crownag-e. who married Samantha Hotchkiss, their son W ilham 
savs. d-imothv. on the T.eacon Ealls road, was a cousm. 
Newel, William and Abram had homes on that roa.l. which was 
quite a thoroughfare once. 

I-liakim Smith, son of l.mathan of West Haven, built a new 
house a few rods from the old one, where his daughter Laura 
tauo-ht a school in 1840 called ••Le1)anon Hill Boarding and Day 
School for voung ladies." She taught iM-ench. music, drawing, 
painting, and other branches, both classical and ornamciUal. 
She married William Dickerman of Hamden. His daughter 
Louise marned Mr. Andrews of Chicago. 111. His daughter 
?^larv married Henry Lounsbury. 



42 liHTII.WV AM) ns HILLS. 

The west side of tlie his^liway was owned l)y join, Thonias. 
l-:s(|. His sons were John, Lewis and Allen.' ( )ne dan-hter 
nian-ied Rev. .Mr. Coleman: the other married Dr. Spencer of 
Naiigatuck. who removed to Bethany and occupied the Thomas 
homestead in 1847. One cold niuhi in l-el,ruary, on returning 
from visitino- patients, he discovered the house was on fire. He 
aroused his wife and young- child, taking them out of the win- 
dow, and then rushing about frantically, he aroused the help, two 
young girls and two young men, who escaped from the w indows 
of the second story. Then, shouting "Where are my hoys?" 
he rushed through the flames up the staircase, and with' one 
son— ages twelve and fourteen— under each arm, as he turned 
to escape the floor fell in beneath them, while the wife and 
mother, with a few neighbors, witnessed the appalling scene. 
The survivors were taken to the home of Mrs. Thomas's son 
Allen near by. and the whole town was overshadowed with 

gloOUL 

Allen Thomas married Afiss Gilbert. Children: .Alarv Ann. 
Caroline. Xanc}-, Fanny. Gilbert. Sarah, John, and Frank.' 
They were remarkably bright scholars, l)ut ijft the town before 
marriage, and it is said are all in Chicago. 111., with the most 
favorable surroundings. 

Lewis Thomas owned the Darius Deecher house, which was 
a wedding gift from his father. He married .Aliss Feck and the 
only descendant is Mrs. Andrews of Xew Haven. 



LEUAXOX HILL. 

Lebanon Hill derived its name from a pond or lake surrounded 
by cedars. The lake covers several acres and is said to be unfath- 
omable with lead and line. It is covered ( with the exception of 
a few rods in circumference which never freezes) with mosses 
and creeping roots which Mr. Lincoln's Botany describes as "a 
root that extends horizontall\- and sends out fibres, which is 
very tenacioiLs of life, as any part of it containing a joint will 
.grow, its hbres spreading and interlacing theuLselves. thus ren- 
dering a soil more permanent. Holland would be liable to be 
washed away by the action of water were it not that its coasts 
are bound together with these creeping plants." 



44 liETHAXV AND ITS HILLS. 

inhabitants, with railroad faciHtics unsurpassed ; with an 
extensive university, whose professors are some of them mani- 
festing^ their appreciation of the Woodbridge hills by locating- 
there in summer ; so accessible to the sea shore that sea food 
can be obtained readily, etc. 

On the west side of the highway are fine broad meadows, but 
the east side could be so improved by a landscape architect 
that two or three generations hence it might be called an earthly 
paradise. This may seem rather ])reniature, the writer not 
knowing that a foot of the land could be bought for love or 
money. 

The following article appeared in a recent morning paper: 

"It is beginning to be imderstood that one who has consump- 
tion may get well without having such distant and expensive air 
as has been the fashion. For instance, it is now known that 
Connecticut air is good for Connecticut people who have weak 
lungs." 

The Allen Thomas house, near the slope of the hill, is between 
the lake and the highway, and the Asahel judd house at the 
foot of the slope is still nearer, and a foot path leads to the 
treacherous mossy enclosure. The next house was built bv 
Reuben judd where the old road joins the turnpike, and less 
than a fourth of a mile north was the old Perkins tavern, which 
was burned in 1903. It is not known who built the old tavern. 
Perhaps it was Edward Perkins, as he was the proprietor in 
1781. He was son of Peter and Mary (Peck) Perkins, son of 
Peter and Hannah (Lord) Perkins, son of John f\vife not 
known), son of Edward and Elizabeth (Rutcher) I'erkins, who 
were married in New Haven, March 20, 1649. Edward P. 
was b(jrn ( )ctober 25, 1743. He married ]\Iary Thomas, prob- 
ably daughter of Israel and .Martha (Hinc) Thomas. Children : 
Israel, Edward, Mary and Hulda (twins). Electa. He married 
second. Rosanna Judd. Children : Rosanna and Anna. 

He was said to have been a tall, dignified person, in velvet 
small clothes and snowy stockings, with his jet black hair hang- 
ing in a shining (|ueuc from under his cocked hat — the very 
picture of a gentleman of the olden time. There were others 
in the town at that date who dressed in the same stvle. Ailing 
CarrinQ-ton or his father amontr them. 



r.KTIIAXV AM) IIS II 11.1. S. 



45 



Archibald rcrkins. who kc'i^l the tavern after jMlward. was a 
son of Azariah and Anno (Johnson) Perkins, son of John and 
EHzabcth (Hayward) Perkins, son of John (whose wife is not 
known), son of Edward and EHzabeth (lUitcher) J'erkins. 
who were married in Xew i iaven. March 20. 1649. — Coinicclicnt 
Ma gad lie. 

As Edward J'erkins died in ij^\). ])r()hal)ly hv was followed 
by ArchilxUd, born l)ecenil)er, 1758. and married (i) Huldah 
Woodin. and (2) April 19, 1797, married Sarah Xettleton. He 
continued as proprietor until his death, March 4, 1842. His son 
( iuy followed, who married a daut^hter of Jesse Doolittle (a 
peer among women), and the\- remained and conducted the hotel 
until their son Wales, who married Eliza ToUes, succeeded his 
father for several years. His wife died, leaving one son 
Homer, and Wales married ( 2 ) Miss Clark of Woodbridge. and 
later removed to Xaugatuck. 

Betsey, daughter of (iuy. married Peecher Hotchkiss. son of 
Harvey. Children : Clarence, married ^liss Doolittle. daughter 
of Bennett ; both deceased, leaving children : ]^Iason. married 
Mary E. Doolittle. daughter of Lucius ; their daughter. Emma 
D.. married Mr. J. H. Taylor of The Tuttle. ^ilorehouse ^V 
Taylor Co., Xew Haven. 

Jane, daughter of Guy. died young, unmarried. DehTte mar- 
ried Horatio Clark of Prospect. Caroline married Lauren C>»^< 
of Cheshire. 

The children of .Vrchibald Perkins were ArcbibaM. Abner. 
Jesse. l>urr. Charles. 

The "Perkins doughnuts" were so associated with the name 
of the old tavern, they .should be noticed. Mrs. Perkins was 
a superior cook, but her doughnuts were a specialty. She said 
she fried two bushels a week, making over one hundred bushels 
a year. The) were round as an orange, and never too sliort. or 
too long, or too sweet or too scnu". Probably it being such a 
convenient article of food for a lunch on the road addc' '■■ ''"• 
widespread reputation. 

Passing the old toll-gate, gone long ago. was the home <<f 
^Tajor Lounsbury. .son of Elias and Mary ( Perkins) Loun.shury. 
A\ho Iniilt the old red house near we cannot learn . cither 
I'erkins or Lounsbury. ]M-obably. 
7 



46 



BETHANY AND ITS IIir.LS. 



Archibald Aljner Perkins married a daughter of Ephraim 
liotchkiss of Cheshire. Their chikh-en were : EHzabeth, Hul- 
dah, Sarah, Polly, Ephraim and IJenjamin. Elizabeth married 
Burton Sperry. Huldah and Sarah were teachers in the Lan- 
casterian School in Xew Haven. Huldah married Rev. ATr. 
JSlvers, Coni^regational ; Sarah married (jcorge Durrie, portrait 
painter in Xew Haven. Polly married IJenjamin Bronson of 




AKCHUIALO AHNER PERKINS. 
From an old .\inbrotype. 

Xew Haven, whose daughter Amelia married Henry Johnson, 
son of Dr. Johnson of Seymour. He kept a popular grocery 
store on State street. 

Esquire Abner Perkins, as he was called, had a tannery near 
his house seventy years ago and occu]:)ied the old red house 
opposite as a leather store and shoe shop. He was a very 
enterprising' citizen. 

The next house north was the home of Israel Perkins, son of 
Edward, 1)()rn December 30, 1767, who married Alilly Judd, 



•.l-:i'IIA.W AND 11': 



47 



sister of Rosaiina ( his stepmother ) . who were daughters of Isaac, 
son of Josei)h, son of Tliomas. son of Tliomas, son of Thomas, 
"who was one of ilu- Httle ])an(l that made their long journey 
in 1635 through the woods from Massachusetts to the banks 
of the Connecticut, carrying the wife of their pastor. Rev. ]\Ir. 
Hooker, in a htter upon their shoulders." 

The Tuttle book says : "He began studying for a profession. 



-?*!«i.4C«>5C; 




MRS. MII.I.V (jl'DIt) I'EKKIXS. 
Aged g8. l-"roni an old Anibrolype. 



but his father dying the same year, changed his destiny. He 
was a selectman, guardian of children, and was familiarly called 
the old lawver." His daughter Leonora married Isaac Warren 
(of Maytlower descent): children were Israel P., William. 
Harriet. Harris. Isaac. Cornelia, and George. Israel Perkins 
Warren ri'niained with his grandfather, who gave him an 
education, lie graduated at \'ale and was ordained a Congre- 
gational minister. Later he received the title of D.D. and 



48 l!KTII.\.\^■ AM) lis 11 ILLS. 

was settled in I Boston the latter years of his life. He was 
the author of relii^'ious works and ])ul)lished the "Story of 
Chauncey judd. or the Stolen l)oy,"' the particulars of which 
he received from his orandmother. who. he states, resided with 
him until her death at the ai^e of ninet\-nine. 

Harriet married William Canada of Xew Haven. She is 
eig'hty-hve years of age and is well preserved, her memor\ and 
hearing" l)eing" good — a ver\- interesting' j^erson. Their son is a 
fur dealer in Chapel street. 

The other children of Isaac Warren were higlil\- intellectual 
and tilled high positions in other states, and ha\e many 
descendants. 

The old house which was l)uilt by lulward Perkins, and 
where Israel was born and lived to old age. must have been tine 
in its da\-. it was so roomy, with a front lawn several rods deep 
lined with shade trees. The place was sold about seventy years 
ago to Dr. Foote of Haniden, who built a house nearly in front 
of the old one. Within a stone's throw was the old red school 
house, an old landmark, which is now no more, a new one having" 
been built a little farther south. 

Diagonallv across from the old schoolhouse was a (|uaint, 
roomy old house, where ( )liver Hotchkin lived several years. 
He bought it of Job Terrel, whose withnv died at the age of 
ninetv, about 1837. Harpin Hotchkiss bought it later, removed 
it. and built one more modern. He and his wife are both 
deceased ; their son continues the blacksmith business which 
his father established, and their two daughters married two 
brothers, Herbert E. and ( leorge R. Doolittle, who have an 
extensive fish market on liroadway, Xew Haven. 

There was another ver\- old red house a few rods north, 
which Charles iM-ench bought seventy years ago and removed, 
replacing it with one nnieb smaller. He was a carpenter and 
wagonmaker, and had one son, Herbert : all deceased without 
leaving aii heir. Turning to the right on the Prospect road, 
near the top of the road is an old hoiL'^e where Milo lleecher 
once lived. It would be interesting to know who built it. The 
next house north was Titus i'eck"s, son of Samuel"', Timothy"*, 
Samuel', Joseph-, Henry'. He married Sibyl Xettleton. 
Children: Alary, Ephraim. Isaac L.. Laura .\., Titus 1). (born 
1832). Isaac Nettleton, brother to Sibyl, married Tatty Mer- 
win, onlv one of their children remaining in the town. 




KEV. ISKAKI. I-KKKINS WAKKKN. D 1' 



]!l•:•lll.\^'^ and ns iiii.i,.s. 49 

Isaac |u(l(l, ■"the dM scluiolniasUT."" l)r()tlKr()f Milly (jucld) 
Perkins, lived on the crossroad to Cheshire, about a half mile 
east of the schot)lhouse. He married Patience Hammond; and 
indeed she was the personification of patience, for while he was 
teachin.i;- the xoun^;- idea how to shoot, she was teaching the 
youno- girls how to shoot the shuttle, with the warp and the 
woof of which the lads and lasses would eventually he clad m 
garments not to he despised, if it was homes|)un ; tor, after 
being dved and dressed and ])ressed at the mill, it was nice 
enough to be worn on any ordinary occasion, iler blankets 
and table linen, which recpiired four treadles to weave, were 
valued highly in those days. 

She had such a charming way of telling a story that an 
evening spent in her conijjany was enjoyable; after the twilight 
had driven her from the loom in the huge garret, where were 
the wheels and reel and swifts, and the warping bars, as high 
as one could reach to lav the warp. This recpiired the skill of 
an expert, especially in plaids or checks, which, after l)emg 
rolled on the great beam and drawn through reed and gear, 
and a thread found wrong (which would ruin the whole piece, 
if not remedied immediately), was enough to try the ])atience of 
an angel, but "Aunt Patience" was equal to the task. When 
she was .seated in her high-back easy chair, with her arms akimbo 
across her checked linsey-woolsey apron, her dear old face 
beaming with snnles. she would tell tales of the "Revolution." 
of "Chauncev's capture" (her husband's brother), which she 
never tired of repeating; and one could fancy that she came 
from a fairv land as she described the old-time festivities in 
the grand old ballrooms, the gentlemen in their knee-breeches 
and ruftled shirt bosoms, with their long hair powdered and 
curled and (|ueued. etc. And in answer to the question. "How. 
pray, were the ladies dressed to match with such gay cavaliers.- ' 
she' would rei)lv. ••()h. thev looked just as tine. Some of the 
wealthiest had silks and laces that were 'brought over' as old 
heirlooms, and others were dressed in white.— and what is 
jn-ettier for belle or bride? And the red camlet cloaks they 
wore, weren't they ii^ny ■ 

Sometimes she would amuse us with some of '•I'nrdys 
pranks." who she said api)eared in the neighborhood .soon after 
the War of the Revolution as suddenlv as a meteor dropped 



50 V.ETllANV ANH US HU.l.S. 

from the skies, aiul any allusion in roiiaril to his tornior alxvlc 
was always mot with such evasive shrewdness as to settle the 
question ».lirectly. 

The house of William Purdy. known as \V\\\ runly. the wui^. 
was like a hird's nest. There was a small kitchen, with a 
smaller bedr(.xMn. and the small attic, where the little family of 
Purdys slept, was reached by a ladder. There were sixteen. 
including' one pair of twins, who were so bright and handsome 
that they always attracted the attention of strangers, who would 
ask their name, and the reply, always sinutlianeousl\ . 

"Harley Cone ami Harvey Bono. 
Clever two men ever known." 

brought them many jxMmies. 

Purdy could make a rhyme at short notice, not always poetic. 
which would cause gTcat mirth and hilarity at the tavern. He 
had a little g-arden patch with a few fruit trees, and he always 
kept a cow on the highway. When he died about 1840 the little 
Purdvs had all found homes in other towns, and when they 
came to the funeral of their father their mother returned to 
their home with them. It is said that one of the daughters 
marricil a gentleman who was quite distinguished, and the sons 
held honorable positions. 

The land adjoining- was known as the Tuttle farm. It 
extended to the mountain on the east and as far south as the 
crossroad by the David Perkins ]ilace. where there is an 
elevation commanding a hue view. The tract consisted of 
several hundred acres. The extreme northeastern part, over 
200 acres, was probably Xathaniels. antl .^old to Abraham 
Marks and his brother-in-law. Samuel Merwin of Milford. when 
Nathaniel removed to the State of New ^"ork. anil his hnnher 
I'ri hail settled on the other portion. 

I'ri"' Tuttle was born in Hamden. Conn.. September S. 1738. 
son of XathanieP. XathanieT". Jonathan-'. William', who was 
born in England, and settled in Xew Haven in i(\^0- He was 
married in Bethany. December 5. 1704. by Rev. Stephen llawley 
to Thankful Ives of Hamden. daughter of |onathan\ Sanmel'. 
loseph-. William\ who was born in luigland. ami one of the 
first settlers of Xew Haven. Children : 



i;i-.i ii.\.\ 1 \,\i) n 



5' 



I. Jeremiah, married Sarah Crittenden. Children: Sally and 
Charles, twins, born October 1 1, 1789. Charles renKJved to Xew 
York State and married Ruth Jones. Children : I'jiiily, Delos, 
LeRoy. Melinda, Calista. Jared. Alma. Jennette, and Julia, who 
married Dr. John Curtis. Melinda married her cousin, Edwin 
A. Tuttle of Hethany. LeRoy married Adelaide Merrv and 
removed west. He was a banker and broker. Later he was 
employed in Washinf^ton. D. C. as Assistant Treasurer in the 




THE OLD IRI TITTI.E HOUSE, SOUTH VIEW. 



United States Treasury. After fourteen years in the service 
he resigned at the same time with (ieneral Spinner. Me died 
in 1858. leaving- one son. LeRoy. Alma married Ahram 
Zoller. Their daughter Jessie graduated at X'assar College in 
1880. 

2. Amasa. married Esther Tolles. daughter of I^izarus and 
Sil)vl llillamv. Children: Sarah I'.ellamy'. who married j-'.liakim 
Smith: son Henry', married Elizabeth P.radley and removed 
to Illinois: three children: daughter Laura-, married William 
Dickcrman of Hamdeii. i'luir daughter Cora married Rev. 



52 



RETHANY AND ITS HILLS. 



Clarence Colten. After his decease she married Rev. Samuel 
D. Paine of Florida. Esther Tolles-. married Levi Merwin 
Marks. Children: Mary E.. Minerva C, David 15., Amasa A., 
Eliza Jennette. Amasa A. married Lucy A. Piatt and removed 
to New York, where he has been engaged in the manufacture 
of artificial limbs in Broadway. Xew York, over fifty years. 
He has the sword and gun which was his g-randfather's, Amasa 
Tuttle's, when he was captain of the militia companv in Bethany. 




JHK (JI.IP L kl T( TTLE HOISE, NORTH VIEW. 



3. Cri, burned to death, aged four. 

4. Chauncey, married Mrs. Elizabeth Peck. 

5. Mary, married Jonah Todd. There are many descendants. 
Three grandsons were jewelers in Mroadway, New York, many 
years. 

6. Uri, married Electa Perkins, daughter of Edward^ 

7. Elam, married Mary Scofield : went west. 

8. Benajah, went to State of New York. 

9. James Seymour, married Sarah Gilbert of Hamden, who 
was a descendant of Matthew (iilbert, one of the seven pillars 



^^:TI^.\^"^■ and i is iiii.r.s. 



53 



of the first church, and l)ci)ut}- Governor of the New Haven 
Colony for seven years. 

lo. Calvin, married S\lvia Smith; six chil(h-en, hri^ht and 
much res])ecled. all deceased, leaviiii^' no heirs. 

lames Sevmour learned the trade of axe-makinj^'. was an 
ex])ert, and his axes commanded a widespread re])Utation. He 




SEVMOUK TITTLE. 



located on the turn])ike and his ])lacksniilh sho]) stood at the 
fork of the roads which led to Waterhury. 



"As great rvtiiagoras of yore. 
Standing beside the blacksmith's door 
.•\nd licwing the liammers, as they smote 
The anvils with a different note, 
Stole from the varying tones; that hung 
\'iln;iiit 'Ml e\ery imn tongue. 
The secret of the sounding wire. 
And formed the seven ciiorded lyre.'"— /.('».e;/i-//('W. 



54 



BETHANY AND ITS HILLS. 



Although Mr. Tuttle was not a Hni^uist hke his kinsman. 
EHliu r.urritt. "the Learned blacksmith," he was passionately 
fond of music. He built a room in his hoiuse with an arched 
ceiling, which was appreciated by musicians in that vicinitv. 
As it was opposite his shop, sometimes a young man "who had 
an axe to grind" would make it convenient to attend a musicale 
or rehearsal in the eveninu'. 




MISS JEXNKTTE TUTTLE. 

Mr. Tuttle had six daughters, all singers. 

"Well might lie gaze upon them for they were fair and tall. 
Ye never have seen fairer in liower nor yet in hall. 
Small marvel if the gallant's heart beat quieker in his breast, 
"Twas hard to choose and hard to lose, how might he win the best." 



Eliza, the eldest, married .Sanuiel Davidson of Wallingford. 
Their son, S. Gilbert, removed to Bethany after his father's 
decease. He married Sarah jane Green, who was a Mayflower 
descendant, and their son Tvler married Miss Scranton, who 



IlETHAXV AM) IIS 11 ILLS. 55 

was also a descendant of the Ma\t1()\ver, and tlieir three children 
are beautiful to look ui)on. 

Sylvia married Geori;e iY'ck (son of George, Esq.), who 
removed to New Haven. His fine tenor voice, while he sang 
in the choir of the First ^Methodist Church, is still referred to 
with pleasure by some of the old members. He was a man 
greatly respected. One son was killed during the Civil War. 
Another died later. The only surviving son is ( ieneral Henry 
S. Peck of Chapel street, New Haven. 

Sariette married George Kimberly of Bethany, who removed 
to \\'estville and kept a grocery store several years. 

Juliana married Elizur 1 Bradley, son of Joseph. He removed 
to Orange, was a wood dealer, and left a good estate. 

Charry married Xo\es \\'heeler, a descendant of Moses 
Wheeler of Stratford, who was born in England in 1598 and 
died at the age of one hundred. Mr. Wheeler was an influential 
farmer of 1 Bethany. One daughter, Jenny, survives. 

Jennett, the youngest, remains at the homestead and has sung 
in the choir of the Episcopal Church seventy years, with the 
exception of a few years when she was organist. She still 
sings in the "choir." at the age of eighty-two. She is still 
active in society and in the household (1905J. 

One son. Charles, was also a singer. He married Miss 
Bishop of \\'allingford. Their only son Seymour married 
Sarah At water, daughter of Rev. Mr. Atwater, pastor of the 
Episcopal Church in Bethany at that date. He went west and 
died young. Sarah, the only daughter, married Mr. Maginn. 
an enterprising and thrift\- farmer. Their son resides at the old 
Chauncey Tuttle homestead, near the Methodist Church. 

Seymour Tuttle sang in the Episcopal Church choir until a 
week before his death, at the age of jy . On Saturday, while 
he was very ill, a nieml)er of the choir called upon him and 
said. "We shall miss you in the choir to-morrow." when he 
re])lied, "While you are singing in church I shall be singing 
with the angels in heaven." And, truly, during the morning 
services at church his s])irit fled to realms unknown. 

The miLsic of the Christmas bells made him supremely hai)p\ 

as he and l^s(|uire Abner Perkins stood up in the front seat of 

the gallerv. Who remembers the merry Christmas of those 

(lavs, when the church was illuminaled with candles, one to 

8 



56 P.KTHANV AMI 11 S 11 ILLS. 

each pane of qlass : the ramble in the woods to i;"ather the 
hemlock, the lanrel and feathery pine, which nimble finders 
in fragrant garlands twined, "tc^ lieantify the place of the 
sanctuary?" The music, the Christmas anthems, the solos, the 
chorus, the Hallee. Hallelujah, si^ uplifting that one only had to 
close their eyes to feel that they were lifted to the skies. 

Leonard Todd was born in Bethany, November 8. 1800. He 
was son of Ely", Jonah"'. Stephen*. Samuel""", Samuel-. Christo- 
pher\ who came from England and settled in New Haven in 
1694. Leonard" married Julia r>. Rradley. daughter of Elam 
Bradley of Hanulen. They celebrated their golden weilding. 
He died in 1876. His witUnv lived to the age of ninety-eight. 
Their children were: Grace, who married, as second wife. Rev. 
F. B. Woodward: Emily, married Isaac Perkins, son of Enos ; 
^ilargaret, married Chauncey T. Beecher, son of Lysias ; Celia. 
married Wales F. Dickerman : Street B.. married Sarah A. 
Hotchkiss, daughter of Spencer; Dwight E.. married Mrs. 
Kate E. (Sperry) Bishop, daughter of Enos Sperry. and Jasper 
B., married Mary A., daughter of Rev. Martin !Moody. Street 
B. represented the town in the Legislature in 1880. Jasper B. 
was selectman in 1888-89. He is a warden in the Episcopal 
Church. 

The Carrington family is one of great antiquity. Sir Michael 
Carrington. who was a standard-bearer to Richard 1.. was the 
first of whom any records have been found. His grandson. 
Sir William Carrington, was an oflficer under Edward L, 1272- 
1307. Sir Edward Carrington was an officer under Edward 
IL. 1 307-1 327. A long list of titles — sirs, barons and viscounts 
— follow down to ] 706. 

The first of this name at New Haven on record is Dr. Peter 
Carrington, who appears to have been a prominent physician. 
He married Anna, daughter of William Wilmot. His son 
John, born July 10. 1692. married Deborah (Thomas), widow 
of Abraham Hotchkiss. as early as the year 1732. Their son 
AbrahauL according to the records of Center CTurch. New 
Haven, was baptized Nov. 11. 1733. The records of the Con- 
gregational Church of ^^'oodbridg■e state that he married 
Rebecca Johnson November 15. 1756. The rec(M-(ls of Con- 
necticut men in the War of the Revolution. ■■Al)raham Carring- 
ton commands guards at Milford in 1781." His estate was 



I'.l'nilANV AND ns II ILLS. 57 

scttliMl juiK' 5. I7<j<). Mis widow was living' in i(S()<S. Their 
son. Ailing C'arrini^ldn, was Ixini in Woodbridt^c in 1757. He 
married llnldali Perkins l)ecenil)er 24. 1781. Slie died Sep- 
tember 20. 1803. lea\in^- one son. Nehemiah. lie married as 
second wife. Xaney. daug'hter of ( )liver Atwood, October 3, 
1805. 'idieir children were: Edwin, a physician in Farmington ; 
William, wenl sonlh, where he resided nntil his (k'alh. He was 
one of the foremost merchants in Charleston and was beloved 
by all citizens for his hi,i;h moral character and pleasant dis- 
position: Henry A. and h)hn llennett. .Vlliiii;- Carrini^ton died 
June 4. 1831. His widow married l^lihu Sanford and died jnl\' 
5, 1853, aged seventy-six. 

Henry .V. Carrington was born in 15ethan\- in 1808. He took 
the old homestead and remained on the farm. He married in 
1832 Samantha Tolles. 'Jdiey had four children: l'".dward H., 
married h'anny E. Lounsbnrw only child of .\ewel : Mary S.. 
married Wales H. French: Josephine, married H. W. I>eeclier, 
and second married tfagot IJogigian, an Armenian : Justine 
married h'rank L. COe. 

Henry A. C'arringtoii died in 1855. His early death was a 
loss not only to his family, but to the entire community. He 
was progressive, a typical farmer, and very enthusiastic on the 
subject of fruit culture. He would not acce])t scions from the 
hands of an itinerant professor in that line, but would procure 
si)ecimeiKs himself and do the grafting with his own hands. 
The result is now seen in the choice fruits from his orchards. 
His house, which was one of the largest of the tine old houses 
that were destroyed b\- hre in the town, was discovered on fire 
one .Sunda\- while members of the family were at church. Mrs. 
Carrington. who was ill, and her little twin daughters could 
only save theiiLselves and witness their home burn down, with 
all its valuable contents. 

Mr. Carrington built another on the same site, of a different 
style, which later, wlun occupied by Mrs. Coe. was discovered 
to be on fire, .^he rushed to the telephone in time l<» call neigh- 
bors, who assisted in saving many things of value, but the 
house was destroyt'd. 

A singular coincidence was in the burning of the home of her 
twin sister, who resided near Uoston, the same year, the loss 
being estimated at twentv-five thousand dollars. 



58 r.ETHA.W AM) IIS iiii.r.s. 

John Ik'iiiicU Carrington. son of Ailing, was horn Xovcnihcr 
6. 181 1. He married Harriet, (kui^hter of RosweU and Xancy 
(Hayes) Tro\vl>ridge, Septemher 12. 1838. He ched h\d)ruary 
12, 1881. He was hest known to the pul)hc through his long 
and prominent eonnection with the press of New Haven. After 
a numher of years of study, starting" when a mere hid, and the 
editing and pnlihshing" of various ])ul)lications, he hegan the 
pnhhcation of the New Haven Daily Herald Xoveniher 28. 1832, 
whieh later, through consolitlation, heeame the Journal and 
Courier, and whieh to-day is puhlished under the name of the 
Carrington Pulilishing Company, his son. John \\. C'arrington, 
being the president of the eompany. 

Paragraphs copied from a lengthy obituary notice in the Xew 
Haven Register: 

"The death of Mr. Carrington leaves a void in business circles, 
and there will l)e much casting about for some one to fill the 
places of responsibilitv and trust with which he IkuI 1)een 
burdened." 

■'His trip through Europe, less than ten years ago, led to a 
series of letters, elegant in diction and coiuprehensive in s])irit. 
which were admissible as specimens of epistolar\' work."" 

"Mr. Carrington was in some respects a re])resentative man, 
for he illustrated in his person the princijile of devotion to work 
and constant industr\-, which luust always lead to sticcess in 
every pursuit." 

"As a husband and father the deceased was everything 
estimable in human nature." 

"He will be missed everywhere and by all classes of people." 

Theophilus Smith, son of Nathaniel and Catherine (]^liles) 
daughter of Theophilus, was a direct descendant of Richard 
Miles, whose name is on the Memorial liridge at Milford. He was 
born in ^lilford, where he taught school previous to his removal 
to llethanv. He was a man of commanding presence and enter- 
tained guests in the most courteous manner. After the decease 
of his wife, who left three children, Kdwin, Ciles, and Mary, he 
married a daughter of Lysias Beecher. who died, leaving a 
daughter, Elizabeth, who married Rev. h^dmund Peck. Later 
he married Eliza, sister of his second wife, and their son lost 
his life in the late Civil War. 




lOHN JiKNNKTT ( AKKl M . 1 1 1\ 



I'.KI IIAXV AM) ITS II II. I, S. 



59 



He bought llic old tawni ])r(.\i()ns to iS^^o. It is said to have 
been btiilt Ijy David \\'oo(Hng for a host<,h-y. 'llie front view 
])resented a very im])osino- appearance, it was three stories; 
tlie first was built of a fine sandstone and oecupied as a grocery 
and dry-goods store: the second story extended out on both 
sides many feet, arranged for the entertainment of travelers. 
Being located near the fork of the roads, it was ecpially accessible 
to tlie \\'aterbury road which led through Prospect and the one 
which led through Xauo-atuck. 




THK WILLIAM \V()( )|il NT. HOVSE. 



After the Xaugatuck railroad was built the inanu facluring 
companies of W'aterbury sent all their freight for New York 
and Xew Haven by the railroad, which previously had employed 
teamsters with two, four and si.x horses, who would stop over 
night either at Landlord Smith's or Perkins' taverns; each had 
their favorites. They had heavy loads both ways, hogsheads of 
sugar and molasses, etc., for the grocers, and goods for the 
furniture warehouses. One would be surprised to know what 
a thoroughfare it was in those days. The stage coach, which 
is still running tri-weekly, with few passengers, was drawn 
b\- four horses. 



OO RETHANV AND I IS UUl.S. 

The travelers ai the inns, with their teams, nuule Uvely times 
for the farmers hy ereatinji a home market tor their produee. 
their hay and grain. Most tamihes had sons to till the soil and 
daughters to assist in domestie duties, henee extra help was 
seldom required. 

Wlien tratfie ceased. Mr. Smith tov^k down the old inn and 
built a two-story house tor a ]>rivate residence. Alter his 
decease his son-in-law . Mr. Peck, and tamilv residcvl there until 




I Hi: iU'Al'l.KV MUA.S. 



it was destroyed by tire in uk^j. while Mrs. Took was visiting 
her married daughter in Waterhnry. The tire was discoxered 
by a neighbor too late to save the lives of .Mr. Peck and his 
daughter Mary, who perisheil in the tiames. The stMi barely 
escaped by jumping from the upper story. Again the whole 
town was shocked by a holocaust. 

Rev. Edmund Peck was born in lireenwich, Loini.. in 1S17. 
and was descended in a ilirect line from Rev. Jeremiah Peek, 
who was one of the twenty-seven purchasers of that portion of 
the town called Old (.Ireenwich. He was born in luigland in 



r.KTIIAXV AND 11 



6i 



1623, son of Deacon William 1 'cck of tlu- Xew Haven Colony, 
1639. Ivev. jereniiali laui^ht Latin. Creek. Hebrew and oratory 
in the Xew Haven Grammar and Colony School (Hopkins) 
durin,^- the year 1660-1661. In 1674 he became the first settled 
pastor of the tirst Congrei^'ational Chnrch in Greenwich and 
remained until 1689. 

Rev. lulmund preached in the Methodist Chnrch in iJethany 
sixteen vears. He marrie<l as second wife, in 1862. I-'lizahetli 







y,m 






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HE HU.\UM-:V .NULLS. 



B. Smith, daughter of Theophilus Smith. Their children were: 
Mary E., Lanra R. and Charles \\. 

The propertv is now owned ])y the Xew Haven Water 
Company. 

Edp^ar L. W'akeman. a noted traveler, .said in 1889: "Ihere 
are hundreds of city hostelries and wayside inns still standins.^ 
in which nnich of the history of our country was formulated, 
and whose olden .quests and activities nursed the later j^rand 
development of half a continent. What old Eni,dand was in 
motherhood to Xew l-ji.^land. the latter has been to all our fair 



62 



BETHANY AND llS HILLS. 



land; and it is a sweet and kindly thing to hold with jirizing" 
to the memory mosses of these qnaint old entertainment manses 
of the New England city street and leafy country nxul." 

The Garrv Hoadle\' house on the old road, east of the turn- 
pike, led past the Escpiire Peck house, which is gone and the 
site is covered hy "I^.ethany Lake." 

The house and mills across the street opjxisite were l)uilt l)y 

Ami Hoadlev, who married . Children : Ursula, 

married Isaac Doolittle ; Harriet, married William Burnham ; 
(larrv, married Lucv Doolittle and remained at the homestead. 







THE HOAIH.EV .MILLS AM) DA.\K 



where he conducted the grist mill and saw mill, and others. 
which was a very thriving business for man\' years. His son 
Denzil, who married Ann J. Aloakley, succeeded him. His 
daughter Amanda married l^'rederic W^arner. Tlie mills are all 
cleared awa\- and the pro])erty is owned by the Xew Haven 
Water Company. 

Lambert W^wding, born in 1825. luarried Celia .V. I'.oyce in 
1865. He was the son of Levi (who married Poll\- Bradley ), 
son of Elijah, son of John, who may have been son of r3avid 
who 1)uilt the "hotel."" The family were located on the road 
running north from the Garry Hoadley place, and known as 



I'.KTIIAXV AM) ITS HILLS. 



^i 



Woodiiii^^ Hill. William Wooding" lived just south of Garry 
Hoadley's. His son Charles removed to Cheshire. His daugh- 
ter Elizal^eth married Aiuasa Brooks and resides in Waterbury. 
"The Sanford family is of English origin, descended from an 
ancient Shropshire clan whose founder. Thomas Sanford, a 
Xorman follower of William the CoiKjueror. is mentioned on 
the roll of Battle Abbey. October i. 1066. His son, Sir Thomas, 
lield in the time of King Henry I. the Manor of Rothal and 




THE IIOAULEV MILL.S IJAAL 



Sandford. and the latter is still in the possession of his descend- 
ants. 'Hionias Sandford came to America in 1631. F^phraim, 
born 1646; wife. Sarah." There were so many of that name 
among the first settlers in liethany it is difficult to trace 
them. 

'i'he first of that name settled in Milford. and later in Wood- 
bridge and liethany. Archibald ."^anford located on the road 
from Cheshire, near the mountain, and ])er]iaps owned land to 
the summit, which gave it the name of .Mt. Sanford. 

I'lisha .^anford. son of Elisha. was born in Woodbridge. July 
I. 

y 



64 BETHAiW AND ITS HILLS. 

resided during his life. ( It was liuilt l)y Isaac Sperry, the first 
house huilt on the road after the turnpike was cut through, and 
later his son Enos built the tirst house over the line in Bethany. ) 
Henry Sanford married a daughter of idirani Hotchkiss, and 
their son Alvin married Emma Keeler of Xew Haven. Their 
son Justin H. has been clerk in the office of the purchasing" agent 
of the .\e\v Haven Railroad eighteen years and has been ])ro- 
moted from time to time. 

Lucretia, daughter of Elisha, married Alvin Perkins, son of 
David, who married Lowly, daughter of Jonah Todd. Their 
daughter married Thomas Hull of Westville, whose son Charles 
has been engaged in the drug business for several years. 

Stephen, son of Elisha, had one daughter, who married Rufus 
Russell, architect, whose son Byron is a Universalist minister, 
and a daughter married Oscar Dikeman of Xew Haven. 
Another daughter of Stephen married a Mr. Champion, whose 
son is one of the leading tiorists of Xew Haven. 



It seems titting to state that I have no pecuniary interest in 
the town, as the land which was my father's and grandfather's 
and great-grandfather's has all passed out of the hands of our 
family. A large share of it is owned l)y the Xew Haven Water 
Company. There is one spot, however, fondI\- cherished in 
memory, the spring, the fountain head of the rippling stream 
which expanded to a river called West River. It is so associated 
with our school days that it suggests a schoolgirl rhyme. 

O, tlic spring where tlie crystal waters flow. 
Just over the ledge where the sweet ferns grow, 
Wliere we quenched our thirst on a summer's day 
In (|uest of l)erries just over the way. 

And wlien we went nutting across tlie hrdok. 
We lingered avvlhlc in the cosey nook. 
'i"o listen to the uuirniur of tlie stream. 
So long, long ago, it seems like a dream. 

And when from the orchard over tlie lane 
Our basket of fruit we could not refrain, 
The apples so red and yellow, to bring 
And rest on the ledge by the crystal spring. 



I'.i'.Tii.wv anm:) its II ills. 



65 



With the passing of years, tlirce score and ten, 
Tlie water still flowing down throngh the glen,^ 
To the city it flows, filling the urn, 
Witli crvstal water from the faucet's turn. 



To the companions of my youth, a loving adieu 
If any still linger, as the numbers must be few; 
To all readers, at parting, my heart with kindness thrills 
With a loving benediction to the dear old "Hills." 





MRS. ELIZA J. (MARKS) LINES. 



ADDENDA. 



As (Mily a limilcd iiunihcT of hooks were Ixmiid, a (K'man<l 
for additional co])ies enables us to correct the erroneniis 
impression that all the old homes are vacant, because the names 
of the present owners or occu])ants were not mentioned. A 
few of them have since been learned, which adds a progressive 
element much appreciated in tiie town. 

At the Mvan S])erry ])lace is Dwit^ht L. Johnson; at the 1 )r. 
Castle and bdihu Sanford tlu' Messrs. Cotter; at the I^liakim 
Smith's Mr. I linman; at the Allen Thomas house .Mr. Warner; 
Mr. l)owns at the Reuben Judd's ; and Dwi^ht liumistt»n at 
the Anan Atwater house; and the indications are that the next 
census taken will show a large increase of the po])ulation. 

An article ])ublished in 1880 states that "within the last si.\ 
months llethany has lost four of its oldest citizens, all esteemed 
men — Levi .M. .Marks. Lewis Tolles, Enos Sperry and Miles 
Hitchcock, which makes (|uite a chancre in some of the oM 
familiar places." 

The Sevmour Record pul)lishes frequently an account ol the 
condition and progress of the churches and schools in the town 
of llethany. 

1 would add a loving tribute to the memory o\ my classmates 
at the Lebanon 1 fill School, who have pas.sed away. — Kmeline 
and Catherine Woodward, daughters of Rev. )•'. U. Woodward; 
hdlen Thomas, who married John 1'. IJotchkiss; Sarah Louns- 
burv. who married Judge Xalhan L'lark ; Charlotte lloadley. 
who married 1 lar])iii lloichkiss. and .Margaret Todd, who mar- 
ried ChannccN lleecher. And now my dearly beloved bn-ther 
Amasa A. .Marks has also passed before me to another sphere. 
He laid down to sleep on the i<nh of Jul\. and never awoke; 
although he had lived four score years, it is a grief so sad 
that I can only say. 

"I tool likf niif wlio treads alone 
Some li.iiuiuel liall (k'serted." 

.Mks. 1-:i.i/\ I. ' 




Mrs. Marv Siekkv N..Ki. - - ' loo yeaks. 

ANi» Her Dksckndants— Five Generations 



A BETHANY CENTENARIAN. 



Mrs. Mary Sperry Xorlhrop celebrated her (jiie huiKlredth 
birlhdav in West Ilaven on the 26th, at the home of her son, 
Charles Xorthrop. During- the course of the day nearly a 
hundred people, relatives and friends, called to offer congratu- 
lations or to bring some little token of remembrance. 

b'ive generations of the family were represented and their 
pictures were taken. 

This remarkable lady was born in P.ethany, September 26th, 
1805. She was the eldest of a family of eight children of 
Micah and Patty (Downs) Sperry and is the last surviving 
member of her family. 1 ler brothers and sisters were: 
Phinette. married Xehcmiah .\ndrews ; Eliza, died young; 
Maria, died aged 29. unmarried; George, married Mary A. 
Cables; .Mark, married Harriet Elder; Andrew, married Eliza 
Sackett ; L\nian. remained unmarried. 

Mrs. Xorthrop was born in an old house long since torn down, 
which stood near the present residence of Judge E. N. Clark 
in iJethany. When she was five years old her father moved 
over to "Squabble 1 1 ill." in the west part of the town, where 
she lived until December, [826, when she married Marvin 
Xorthroj), a prosperous farmer of Pethany. who built a small 
house in the south part of the same town, in which she spent 
the greater part of her life. 1 Icr father died in Eebruary, 1861, 
aged 80. He was a shi^emaker, and every one knew "Uncle 
Mike" in those days. 

.Mrs. .Xorthrop is the sixth in descent from Richard Sperry, 
her line being as follows: Richard, Ebenezer, Isaac, Isaac 2d, 
Micah and Mary. 

Mrs. Xorthrop's immediate family, like her father's, was a 
large one. lught children blessed the union of Mary Sperry 
and Marvin Xorthrop. four of whom are living — Charles 
Xiu-ihrop, with whom she resides, is yy years old and is the 
eldest of the family; Elizur Xorthrop of P.rooklyn. Marshall 
Xorthrop of West Haven and Mrs Sarah Merwin of New 
Haven, who were all present at her birthday party. 



Four of the children have died. John died in 1861. aged 25. 
Theodore (hed young-. Phinettc (hed young. DeHa married 
David Smith of Woodbridge and ched in I'ebruary. U)04. aged 
67, greatly respected and beloved. 

Mrs. Northrop resided with Mrs. Smith after breaking up 
the Bethany home about t\vent\-five years ago. Since her 
daughter's death she has resided with her son most of the time. 
Beside her four children she has seven grandchildren, nine great 
grandchildren and eight of the fifth generation. 

One always notes her cheery smile and genial disposition. 
Her good-nature has become proverbial, as is vouched by 
those who care for her. She always has a jc^ke t(^ crack, or a 
storv of "\e olden time" to relate. She has always worked 
hard, but has never fretted in doing so, which is one of the 
secrets of longevity. She has worked up till ti\e years ago, 
when she had a severe attack oi the grippe. Since that time 
she has not done so much work, yet she is seldom idle. It 
is a common occurrence while visiting her to find her sewing 
or engaged in reading. She can boast of never having had a 
pair of glasses fitted to her eyes. 

Through life's patliway she has gathered flowers 

To lighten and brighten the golden hours ; 

And scattered them freely everywhere. 

Like rays of sunshine in the air. 

No haughty frown ever wrinkled her brow. 

Ever fair and serene, as it is now. 

Her eyes are still bright, and a smile so sweet. 

So cheerily always her friends to greet, 

Is a pearl without price, a precious gem. 

And a crown of glory, a diadem. 



The photographs taken by Myron W. Filley of New Haven 
are on pages (or opposite) 6, 8, 10, 11, 12, 15, 16, 24. 26, 28, 
32, 38, 39, 40, 44, 51, 52, 54, 64. Those by George E. Marks of 
New York, on pages (or opposite) 3, 5, 20, 22, 30, 42, 46, 62; 
by Ferguson of New Haven, pages (or opposite) 59, 60, 61, 
62, 63. 


















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